SCOTLAND

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

David Mundell: The Joint Management Board of the Scotland Office and the Office of the Advocate General comprises (a) seven male and one female executive members, and (b) two male non-executive members.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

David Mundell: All members of the Joint Management Board of the Scotland Office and the Office of the Advocate General are identified as white British.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

David Mundell: My Department's answers to parliamentary questions are a matter of public record and can be found in the Official Report.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

David Mundell: The gender breakdown of staff recruited to join the Scotland Office since 5 May 2010 was 49% men and 51% women.

ELECTORAL COMMISSION COMMITTEE

Local Government: Elections

Chris Ruane: To ask the hon. Member for South West Devon, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, which local authorities in each English region and constituent part of the UK failed to meet performance standard 3 on house-to-house enquiries in 2012.

Gary Streeter: The Electoral Commission refers the hon. Gentleman to its earlier reply of 29 November 2013, Official Report, columns 451-54W, in which it outlined the number of authorities that did not meet the performance standard in 2012.

CHURCH COMMISSIONERS

Qualifications

Madeleine Moon: To ask the hon. Member for Banbury, representing the Church Commissioners, how many people employed by the Church Commissioners hold a (a) bachelor's, (b) master's and (c) PhD-level degree in computer science; and if he will make a statement.

Tony Baldry: The Church Commissioners do keep information about the staff’s educational backgrounds; however, this information is recorded individually on their personal files. To gather the information requested would incur disproportionate costs.

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the median gross pay is of staff in her Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Helen Grant: The following table shows the gross pay of staff in the Department in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.
	
		
			   Median Salary (£) 
			 Grade Civil Service Equivalent Grade White British Ethnic Minority Groups 
			 SCS Pay Band 2 SCS Pay Band 2 91,830 1— 
			 SCS Pay Band 1 SCS Pay Band 1 60,000 61,378 
			 AU Grade 6 54,034 55,525 
			 A Grade 7 47,836 47,671 
			 B HEO/SEO 32,923 30,896 
			 C EO 24,930 26,212 
			 D AA/AO 20,378 20,804 
			 1 Not disclosed. 
		
	
	Completion of this data is non-mandatory for staff. As such these figures may not be fully representative of workforce diversity.
	We do not hold, centrally, data for our executive agencies.

UK Space Agency

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions her Department has had with the UK Space Agency on the use of existing or emerging technology to improve the UK's communications infrastructure.

Edward Vaizey: Department for Culture, Media and Sport officials have regular discussions with the UK Space Agency on a range of issues including the use of satellite technology as part of the UK's communications infrastructure and spectrum issues.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many of her Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Theresa Villiers: My current departmental board is made up of ten executive members and one non-executive member. Of the ten executive members eight are male and the remaining two are female. The one non-executive member is female.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what proportion of staff recruited to her Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

Theresa Villiers: It is not possible to provide this information without incurring disproportionate cost. However, based on information available for November 2013, I can confirm that the composition of staff in the Northern Ireland Office is 48% male and 52% female.

WALES

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office Management Committee consists of four executive and two non-executive members. The gender split of the members is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Member Total Male Female 
			 Executive 4 3 1 
			 Non-Executive 2 2 0 
			 Total 6 5 1

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office Management Committee consists of four executive and two non-executive members. All executive members of the Management Committee are identified as white British. The Department does not hold information on the Ethnic background of the non-executive members of its Management Committee.

Floods: Clwyd

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales 
	(1)  what discussions Ministers in his Department have had over the past year with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in relation to the flooding of St Asaph and Rhuddlan in the Vale of Clwyd;
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on ensuring adequate insurance arrangements are available for properties at risk of flooding.

Stephen Crabb: I have had a number of discussions with ministerial colleagues in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in relation to flooding and the provision of flood insurance to high flood-risk properties. Through the Water Bill we will introduce an industry-backed system to guarantee affordable flood insurance for people in high risk areas.
	In Wales, flood defences are the responsibility of the Welsh Government, and we have provided them with the resources to make investments in Wales to help ensure communities can protect their homes and possessions from the risk of flooding.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Stephen Crabb: All Wales Office staff are expected to comply with departmental rules regulating the use of office computers, including internet use.
	The Wales Office uses the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) IT system, which prevents users gaining access to inappropriate websites by using specialist blocking software. Based on the use of keywords, the system blocks access to websites which contain offensive, racist or defamatory material; gambling or betting sites; websites that may circumvent information security rules such as web-based e-mail; and sites that may affect the efficiency of the network.
	As the content filtering software is dynamic and the websites which are being blocked are constantly changing, there is no list of websites to which access is prohibited.
	The MOJ IT system also blocks access to the following domains:
	*@anonymousspeech.com
	*@australiansubscribers.com
	*@clickandtick.co.uk
	*@coffee-and-croissants.co.uk
	*@engine.insight-vision.net
	*@mk2.netatlantic.com
	*@newsletter.savesafely.co.uk
	*@shoppingdelights.co.uk

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Stephen Crabb: In accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines, the Wales Office does not disclose information relating to five or fewer members of staff. Median gross pay, by pay band and ethnicity, for those categories which include six or more Wales Office staff, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Pay band White British (£) Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups (£) Undeclared (£) 
			 Band F (AA) n/a n/a n/a 
			 Band E (AO) n/a n/a n/a 
			 Band D (EO) n/a n/a n/a 
			 Band C (HEO) 34,340 n/a n/a 
			 Band B (SEO) n/a n/a n/a 
			 Band A n/a n/a 69,577 
			 Senior Civil Service n/a n/a n/a 
			 Note: Information provided as at 31 March 2013

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Stephen Crabb: In accordance with Cabinet Office guidelines, the Wales Office does not disclose information relating to five or fewer members of staff Median gross pay, by pay band and gender, for those categories which include six or more Wales Office staff, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 £ 
			 Pay band Men Women 
			 Band F (AA) n/a n/a 
			 Band E (AO) n/a n/a 
			 Band D (EO) n/a n/a 
			 Band C (HEO) n/a 37,262 
			 Band B (SEO) n/a n/a 
			 Band A 56,306 66,793 
			 Senior civil service 96,531 118,522 
			 Note: Information provided as at 31 March 2013. 
		
	
	Information on the remuneration of Wales Office staff in the senior civil service is already in the public domain.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office's answers to parliamentary questions are a matter of public record and can be found in the Official Report.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

Stephen Crabb: The Wales Office recruited 41 staff through open and fair competition and on merit from 5 May 2010 to 31 March 2013. The gender split of the staff recruited is shown in the following table:
	
		
			 Staff recruited between 5 May 2010 to 31 March 2013 
			  Total Proportion (%) 
			 Male 18 44 
			 Female 23 56 
			 Total 41 100

Unemployment

Jonathan Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what the annual rate of economic inactivity in Wales (a) including and (b) excluding students was in each of the last 10 years.

David Jones: The number of people economically inactive in Wales has never been lower. The rates of economic inactivity in Wales (a) including and (b) excluding students at year ending 30 June in each of the past 10 years is detailed as follows:
	
		
			  (a) Including students (b) Excluding students 
			 2013 26.1 21.8 
			 2012 26.8 22.6 
			 2011 27.4 23.6 
			 2010 27.3 23.9 
			 2009 27.1 23.9 
			 2008 26.6 23.5 
			 2007 27.0 23.9 
			 2006 27.1 24.1 
			 2005 27.3 24.9 
			 2004 27.3 24.8 
			 Note: Year ending 31 December.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Bovine Tuberculosis

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how independent monitoring of the humaneness of the pilot badger culls was maintained during the period of extended culling after the Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency observation teams had been stood down.

George Eustice: The purpose of the structured programme of observations and post mortems during the six week period was to gather data on controlled shooting. The purpose of this work was to assimilate a robust evidence base that will inform conclusions about the humaneness of controlled shooting prepared for consideration by the Independent Expert Panel. This programme of data gathering was completed as planned.
	Natural England also carried out monitoring of cage trapping and shooting and controlled shooting to ensure compliance with licence conditions and the Best Practice Guidance, which includes specific requirements regarding humaneness. If Natural England monitors had concerns about humane shooting practices, and decided that further investigation was needed, a post mortem capability to provide investigatory back-up was available during the extension periods. This capability was also available to police if they needed to pursue an investigation relating to possible cases of wildlife crime.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions he had with the Chair of the Independent Expert Panel on granting extensions of the pilot badger culls before the Panel had reported on the efficiency, humaneness and safety of the pilot culls.

George Eustice: The view of the Chair of the Independent Expert Panel was only sought about the need to continue gathering data for the purposes of assessing humaneness and efficacy during the extension period. The panel's role is primarily to advise on the monitoring protocols and to carry out a scientific review of the results of the monitoring. The terms of reference of the panel did not extend to advising on the implementation of the pilot culls, and the Chair was not consulted about the need for the extensions for the purposes of disease control.
	A structured programme of observations and post mortems to gather data on controlled shooting was implemented during the six week period of the pilots as planned. Careful consideration was given as to whether there was a need to extend this evidence gathering into the extension periods. We concluded, with advice from the Chair that there were no advantages in continuing the humaneness monitoring for a longer period for the purposes of gathering data. An extension beyond the required 60 field observations and the associated 120 post-mortems for rifle shooting would have added little to the robustness of the planned study.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions he had with the chief veterinary officer before extending the pilot badger culls in 2013;
	(2)  what scientific evidence and advice he received before the decision to approve extensions to the pilot badger culls in 2013.

George Eustice: I would like to refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 18 October 2013, Official Report, column 889W.

Bovine Tuberculosis

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what methods his Department uses for testing for the presence of Mycobacterium bovis in badger carcasses; and what assessment he has made of the accuracy of such methods.

George Eustice: Badger carcases are tested for M. bovis by post-mortem examination of the carcase for TB lesions, and by culturing tissue for the presence of the bacterium. When subjected to a more detailed post-mortem protocol (ie more samples from each carcase were cultured) the Randomised Badger Culling Trial found on average one-third of badgers in proactively culled areas to be infected with bTB.

Drinking Water: Standards

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will list the top 10 locations in the UK for poor drinking water quality.

Dan Rogerson: The quality of drinking water in the UK is published each year by the independent drinking water regulators for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Together the reports from these regulators describe the quality all of the public and private water supplies in the UK in terms of the testing that is carried out by water suppliers (public supplies) and local authorities (private supplies). The regulators also publish details of the action taken to require a particular water supply to be improved whenever testing has shown that it is not wholesome or fails to comply with one or more of the standards set down in the EU Drinking Water Directive. The latest reports published by the drinking water regulators can be found on the following websites:
	England and Wales
	The Drinking Water Inspectorate
	www.dwi.gov.uk
	Northern Ireland
	The Drinking Water Inspectorate Northern Ireland
	http://www.doeni.gov.uk/niea/water-home/drinking_water.htm
	Scotland
	The Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland
	http://www.dwqr.org.uk/

JUSTICE

Charter of Fundamental Rights (EU)

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the impact of the EU's Fundamental Charter of Fundamental Rights on (a) British law and (b) immigration cases; and if he will make a statement.

Shailesh Vara: The Government provided an analysis of the UK court's application of the Charter to the European Scrutiny Committee as part of correspondence on the European Commission's 2012 annual report on the application of the Charter. The analysis included relevant immigration cases.
	The analysis confirms the Government's position that the Charter of Fundamental Rights does not create new rights or obligations, that it only applies when the UK is implementing EU law, and that the rights in the Charter must be interpreted in line with their original source.
	The impact of the Charter in the UK is an important issue which the Government will keep under review, including as part of the Balance of Competences review.

Courts: Interpreters

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the actual and targeted performance of the court interpreter contract has been in each month since that contract started.

Shailesh Vara: I have listed below the links to the online published statistics on the use of Language Services in Courts and Tribunals and also the link to Contracts Finder to view the contract document for the Capita-TI contract which includes Key Performance Indicators:
	Statistics:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-use-of-language-services-in-courts-and-tribunals
	Contract Finder:
	https://online.contractsfinder.businesslink.gov.uk/Common/View%20Notice.aspx?site=1000&lang=en&noticeid=264052&fs=true

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Shailesh Vara: The Department does not monitor the composition of boards separately from its general monitoring of the representation of different ethnic groups in ethnic composition.
	The Department is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public which we serve at all levels.

European Convention on Human Rights

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what representations the UK has made to the European Court of Justice on the opinion of the European Commission on the proposed accession of the EU to the European Convention on Human Rights.

Shailesh Vara: The draft Accession Agreement between the EU and the Council of Europe has been referred by the European Commission to the European Court of Justice for its opinion on the agreement's compatibility with the EU Treaties.
	As the Secretary of State for Justice wrote to the European Scrutiny Committee on 4 November, reported in the Committee's 23rd Report of Session 2013-14
	http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201314/cmselect/cmeuleg/83-xxi/8302.htm
	the matter is now subject to litigation so I am unable to comment on the content of the UK's observations to the Court.

Family Courts: Rhyl

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 18 July 2013, Official Report, column 818W, on family courts: Rhyl, whether it remains his intention to relocate work from Rhyl to Prestatyn during or after April 2014.

Shailesh Vara: As announced in the written ministerial statement of 18 October 2012, Official Report, column 36WS, Rhyl county court will be closed no earlier than April 2014. HMCTS is continuing to evaluate options for relocating work from Rhyl county court, which includes transferring it to Prestatyn.

Judiciary

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice pursuant to the answer of 22 November 2013, Official Report, column 1058W, on judiciary, which offences and judicial posts are regarded as incompatible.

Shailesh Vara: Each matter is considered on a case by case basis, however the rules governing judicial discipline have recently been amended to include a list of circumstances which may result in immediate removal from office. These include, among others, criminal convictions for: dishonesty, theft, deception, sexual and violent offences. The full list of circumstances which may be considered under this summary process can be found at Rule 30 of the Judicial Conduct (Judicial and other officer holder) Rules 2013. This summary procedure also applies in the rules governing tribunals and magistrates.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups;
	(2)  what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Shailesh Vara: The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) supports leading by example on equal pay transparency. We regularly publish information on how we are performing on equality and prior to the pan Government pay freeze have annually published equal pay reports. Equal pay was also a factor within the work undertaken in NOMS on Fair and Sustainable grades.
	The gender split across MOJ and NOMS is roughly equal, although the demographic varies according to business area—with more women employed in HMCTS (Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service) and more men employed in NOMS. We are conscious of our gender pay gap and have been working to reduce this. Our trends are moving in the right direction despite the pay freeze.
	Published core MOJ equal pay reporting does not include median pay data and the cost of providing this information would exceed the disproportionate cost threshold. Published data does however include a breakdown of the mean pay gap by pay band for men and women and for white and Black and Minority Ethnic Grouping (BME) employees.
	This report can be found at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/equal-pay-audit-for-the-core-moj-201112
	Further reports have not been published following the pay freeze.
	The MOJ reviews its policy and practices regularly to ensure that equality is embedded proportionately in procurement, commissioning and contract management. We are looking at improving core MOJ equal pay reporting in respect of median data and how to incorporate equal pay data in joint diversity reporting with NOMS in 2014. We are also looking at what we can do to promote the Think, Act, Report initiative to the private and voluntary sector employers with whom we work in the justice sector.

Personal Injury: Compensation

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  whether regulatory bodies have found any evidence of referral fees for personal injury claims being described as marketing fees in response to the ban on such fees;
	(2)  what enforcement action has been taken to date to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 on payment and receipt of referral fees for personal injury claims.

Shailesh Vara: Four approved regulators are responsible for ensuring compliance and enforcement of the ban on referral fees in personal injury cases, which came into effect on 1 April 2013 in England and Wales.
	The Claims Management Regulator (CMR) has found evidence of some claims management companies (CMCs) adapting business models to provide marketing services. The CMR has taken steps to identify non-compliance with the ban, which has involved visits to over 800 CMCs, and detailed analysis of their business models. If any breaches are identified, the CMR will investigate and take appropriate enforcement action.
	The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) has also visited a number of firms to assess suspected breaches of the ban and investigations have been launched into firms that may be in breach. The SRA has also written to around 900 firms with a majority personal injury caseload to remind them of their duty to comply with the ban. While no enforcement action has yet been taken, the SRA works closely with firms to ensure compliance.
	The Financial Conduct Authority and the Bar Standards Board have not found any evidence of referral fees being described as marketing fees and no enforcement action has yet been taken.
	Government action has already seen the number of claims firms operating drop by more than 1,000 since a peak of 3,400 in 2011 to 2,250 now. The number of CMCs operating in the personal injury claims sector has fallen by around 40% since the implementation of the ban and wider reforms to civil litigation.

Prison Service

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many full-time equivalent employees there were in the Prison Service in May (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 to date; and how many his Department expects there to be in May (i) 2014 and (ii) 2015.

Jeremy Wright: Information on the staff employed within Prison Service establishments as at most recent date, as well as at 31 May each year since 2010, is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Table 1: Number of full-time equivalent staff in post in Prison Service in England and Wales, broken down by sector, as at 31 May, 2010-13 and as at 30 September 2013 
			 Date Public sector Prison Service Private sector Prison Service Total Prison Service 
			 31 May 2010 44,620 4,580 49,210 
			 31 May 2011 43,370 4,590 47,970 
			 31 May 2012 40,750 5,690 46,430 
			 31 May 2013 37,530 6,310 43,830 
			 30 September 2013 36,160 5,700 41,860 
			 Notes: 1. Figures do not include staff working in National Offender Management Services Headquarters (NOMS HQ) or regional services. 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 in line with the department’s policy for presenting staffing data. The data is only accurate to this level because late updating of data within HR systems means that the unrounded figures recorded for a specific date have a margin of error around them. Totals are formed from unrounded parts prior to rounding. For this reason, rounded totals may not equal the sum of their rounded parts. 3. Information on private sector prisons has been provided by individual contractors. 
		
	
	Information on projected staff numbers is only available for the public sector and is presented in the following table. The figures again refer only to those staff employed within establishments and do not include NOMS HQ or regional services. Projections are presented for 31 March 2014 and 2015 as these are the dates for which information has been signed-off and submitted through the Civil Service Human Resources return to Cabinet Office.
	
		
			 Table 2: Projections of Number of full-time equivalent staff in post in Public Sector Prison Service in England and Wales, as at 31 March, 2014-15 
			 Date Public sector Prison Service 
			 31 March 2014 32,700 
			 31 March 2015 30,900 
			 Notes: 1. The projections are based on output from the NOMS Workforce model and are rounded to the nearest 100. Staffing demand is based on workforce plans and includes planned reductions as a result of competition benchmarking where this is known. 2. Anticipated future prison closures are included in the modelling, as well as the transfer of HMP Northumberland to the private sector (c. 600 staff). 3. Figures do not account for future impacts of the Transforming Rehabilitation programme. 4. Figures for Private Sector Prisons are not available.

Probation

Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what research his Department has conducted into commissioning probation services from the private sector using payment by results; and whether that research concluded that this would (a) be more cost-effective and (b) lower current levels of reoffending.

Jeremy Wright: Under our Transforming Rehabilitation proposals, payment by results will offer a strong incentive to providers to focus on reducing reoffending.
	We are currently piloting a number of different approaches to payment by results across Government. Of particular value in terms of learning for the Rehabilitation programme are the pilots in Peterborough and Doncaster. Both pilots involve the delivery of through the gate rehabilitation. According to interim reconviction data, these pilots are having a positive effect and show a marked fall in reoffending:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/254186/annex-a-payment-by-results-oct13.pdf
	Final results for the first pilot cohorts will be available in 2014.

Probation

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what steps he is taking to ensure the accountability and effectiveness of private contractors working for the Probation Service;
	(2)  what steps he is taking to ensure that the Probation Service is fit for purpose in (a) Huddersfield and (b) the rest of the UK;
	(3)  what steps he is taking to ensure that community sentences are effectively supervised.

Jeremy Wright: Private contractors working to deliver services on behalf of the Probation Service are currently held to account through regular contract review meetings. At these meetings, performance, quality assurance and financial issues are examined and monitored. Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Probation, which reports to the Secretary of State for Justice, also inspects services delivered by probation providers. This includes those services provided by, and on behalf of, West Yorkshire Probation Trust.
	Under our ‘Transforming Rehabilitation’ reforms we will transform the way in which offenders are managed in the community in order to bring down reoffending rates. All providers of rehabilitation services will be regulated and held to account through a combination of independent inspection, audit and commercial account management by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS). This process will cover all services provided to offenders, including supervision of community sentences.

Squatting

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the cost to the public purse has been of the costs of hearings related to the case of a constituent of the hon. Member for Workington, Gary Tomlinson, in relation to illegal occupancy of a flat belonging to him.

Shailesh Vara: We believe Mr Tomlinson was party or interested party to a number of different court actions in different courts. Identifying all relevant records would involve analysing data from over 170 different courts to see if records for a Gary Tomlinson exist, then reviewing each case individually to check whether it was possible to identify if the record was relevant to the Gary Tomlinson referred to in your question. Separately held records on fee remissions would then need to be reviewed to check whether any of the fees paid in relation to those actions were remitted. This could be done only at disproportionate cost.

Young Offenders

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what assessment he has made of the success of the pilot schemes to limit the use of strip searches in young offender institutions.

Jeremy Wright: The Government recognises that searches can be necessary to ensure the safety and security of young people in custody.
	We have recently extended the pilot that has been running in selected under-18 young offender institutions (YOIs) where full searches are only conducted on the basis of risk rather than as a matter of routine.
	The pilot is being subjected to a monthly analysis. We will consider the overall analysis in the new year.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Apprentices

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  how many apprenticeships were completed in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) the East Midlands and (d) Corby constituency in each of the last three years; and for how long any such apprenticeships lasted;
	(2)  how many apprentices failed to complete their training in (a) the UK, (b) England, (c) the East Midlands, (d) the East of England and (e) Corby constituency in each of the last three years;
	(3)  how many apprentices have completed training in Corby constituency and East Northamptonshire in (a) agriculture, horticulture and animal care, (b) arts, media and publishing, (c) business, administration and law, (d) construction, planning and the built environment, (e) education and training, (f) engineering and manufacturing technologies, (g) health, public services and care, (h) information and communication and technology, (i) leisure, travel and tourism and (j) retail and commercial enterprise in each of the last three years.

Matthew Hancock: Information on apprenticeship achievements by geography are published in Supplementary Tables to a Statistical First Release:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/60297A67-6111-4D21-B0C1-0FF90B108012/0/June2013_Apprenticeship_Achievements_revised.xls
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/
	Information on Apprenticeship Success Rates by geography is published in a Supplementary Table to a Statistical First Release; this information is not published by parliamentary constituency:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/ECCEB3F8-65F5-45B5-85F3-36877F3E3D00/0/January2013_ApprenticeshipSuccessRates.xls
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/
	Information on Apprenticeship Achievements by Sector Subject Area and parliamentary constituency are published in a Supplementary Table to a Statistical First Release:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/C7E2EC14-58AF-43D2-93DF-221C23C2122E/0/June2013 _Apprenticeships_SSA_Geography_Achievements_revised.xls
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/Apprenticeships/
	The Department does not collect further education information relating to the devolved administrations.

Company Accounts

Naomi Long: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to his Department's publication, Transparency and Trust, enhancing the transparency of UK company ownership and increasing trust in UK business, published in July 2013, what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department's proposed record of beneficial company ownership requires sufficient information to ensure individuals are identifiable.

Jo Swinson: The Transparency and Trust discussion paper sought views on a range of questions relating to implementation of the central registry of company beneficial ownership information, including the information to be provided to and available on it. We are carefully considering the responses received to the discussion paper and will respond fully in early 2014.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Jo Swinson: The Department has five male and four female executive board members, and three male and two female non-executive board members. In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government's lead non-executive, the noble Lord, Lord Browne of Madingley, noted that whereas
	“FTSE100 companies only have 12.5 per cent of board members who are women, more than 36 per cent of government non-executives are women.”
	BIS is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public which we serve at all levels. Although completion of declaration data is voluntary, BIS has recently embarked on a campaign to encourage more individuals to record this data. This includes hosting declaration days in our two main offices which are actively supported by Martin Donnelly, the Department's permanent secretary, and Sir John O'Reilly, director general for knowledge and innovation and our equality and diversity champion. BIS is also in the process of developing a new Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Diversity Action Plan which will be launched in 2014.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Jo Swinson: The Department monitors the ethnic diversity of its executive board members but racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned. BIS does not currently hold declaration data on its non-executives, but we intend to review this in the future.
	In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government's Lead Non-Executive, the noble Lord Browne of Madingley, accepted that:
	“the numbers of non-executives with minority ethnic backgrounds remains disappointingly low”
	but reiterated his commitment to improving their representation on departmental boards. This is a commitment I share.
	BIS is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public which we serve at all levels. Although completion of declaration data is voluntary, BIS has recently embarked on a campaign to encourage more individuals to record this data. This includes hosting declaration days in our two main offices which are actively supported by Martin Donnelly, the Department's Permanent Secretary, and Sir John O'Reilly, Director General for Knowledge and Innovation and our Equality and Diversity Champion. BIS is also in the process of developing a new Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Diversity Action Plan which will be launched in 2014.

Hibu

Andrew Bridgen: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what representations he has received from the shareholders of Hibu following allegations of misconduct by the board of the company; and if he will make a statement.

Jo Swinson: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has received some correspondence from MPs writing on behalf of Hibu shareholders. Concerns were expressed about the restructuring of the company and the alleged misconduct of its directors. It was suggested that the use of my right hon. Friend’s investigatory powers under the Companies Act and prosecution action may be appropriate.
	My right hon. Friend met with several MPs on 27 November to discuss these concerns. He made clear that potential misconduct of the directors would be investigated and appropriate enforcement action considered should the company enter administration.
	Hibu was placed in administration on 27 November 2013. The company's administrators have to report within six months to my right hon. Friend on the directors' conduct. He will then consider if disqualification action is appropriate and any potential criminality will be referred to the relevant prosecuting authority.

Higher Education: Admissions

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the total annual cost to the public purse per student of the new student places announced in the Autumn Statement 2013.

David Willetts: We have assumed that, compared to existing students, the additional entrants may be more likely to receive a maintenance grant and more likely to attract a higher RAB charge. On this basis, the average total public cost in 2014-15, for additional full-time English undergraduate entrants that are eligible for and take up both maintenance and fee loans, is estimated to be around £9,000 per year.

Higher Education: Admissions

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether (a) core and margin and (b) other mechanisms for allocating student numbers will apply to (i) new student places announced in the Autumn Statement 2013 and (ii) other future student recruitment.

David Willetts: The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced, in his autumn statement of 5 December, that the Government will provide an additional 30,000 student places in 2014-15 and remove all student number controls in 2015-16 for institutions funded by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). This will allow all those with the ability and desire to go to university to do so. It will also allow popular institutions to grow. We asked HEFCE to introduce new flexibilities into the allocation of student places in 2013-14 and to consider how those could be increased in future years. We will set out the detail of how we will extend these for 2014-15, in the usual way, in our forthcoming grant letter to the Council.

Leave

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what statutory entitlements land-based workers have to (a) paid annual leave and (b) compensatory rest periods; and when each piece of legislation granting such entitlements came into force.

Jo Swinson: The relevant statutory entitlements for land-based workers are as follows:
	(a) (i) Land-based workers are entitled to four weeks' paid annual leave each leave year under the Working Time Regulations 1998, which came into force on 1 October 1998.
	(ii) In addition, for any leave year beginning on or after 1 April 2009, land-based workers are entitled to an additional 1.6 weeks' paid annual leave under the Working Time (Amendment) Regulations 2007, which came into force on 1 October 2007. This additional entitlement does not apply to land workers to whom the Agricultural Wages (Scotland) Act 1949 applies (as defined in the Act), as that Act had effect from 1 July 1999.
	(iii) Total statutory entitlement for land-based workers is capped at 28 days.
	(b) The Working Time Regulations 1998 came into force on 1 October 1998. This entitles land-based workers to compensatory rest where their employers take advantage of exceptions from the default statutory rules about daily rest, weekly rest, rest breaks and (where applicable) night work; workers' entitlement is generally to an equivalent period of rest to what they have been deprived of, but in exceptional cases employers are able to make alternative arrangements to safeguard workers' health and safety.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Jo Swinson: At present only 198 out of a total of 3,378 employees in BIS are shown as having declared their ethnic background on the new online HR system. This includes 15 employees that have declared they are from an ‘Asian’ background, 23 staff from a ‘Black’ background, nine employees from a ‘Mixed’ background, and 151 employees from a ‘White’ background. Three members of staff have responded but have preferred ‘not to say’. When broken down by grade and ethnic background, the numbers will be so low that they will not provide meaningful comparison.
	Although BIS does not mandate the completion of diversity data, we have recently begun a high profile campaign to increase the number of diversity declarations in the Department, coincidental with the introduction of our new online HR System.
	I have approached the chief executives of the Department's executive agencies (Insolvency Service, Companies House, National Measurement Office, Intellectual Property Office, UK Space Agency, Ordnance Survey, Met Office, Land Registry and the Skills Funding Agency) and they will respond to the hon. Member directly.
	Letter from Catherine Mealing-Jones, dated 5 December 2013
	Thank you for your question addressed to the Secretary of State for the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills to ask what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.
	The UK Space Agency was formed on 1st April 2011. Due to the fact that the Agency consists of less than 60 staff of whom less than 5 are of black, Asian or another minority ethnic group, extrapolating the information as requested would identify specific individuals. Therefore, this response details the gross median pay across the UK Agency as a whole.
	AO median gross pay £20,017
	EO median gross pay £21,579
	HEO median gross pay £25,152
	SEO median gross pay £31,204
	Grade 7 median gross pay £48,169
	Grade 6 median gross pay £58,416
	SCS median gross pay £58,809.
	Letter from Ed Lester, dated 4 December 2013
	I write on behalf of Land Registry in response to Parliamentary Question 178167 tabled on 3 December 2013 which asked the following:
	To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.
	The table gives the details required.
	
		
			 Grade Grade median (£) White (£) BME (£) 
			 AA 12,385 12,385 — 
			 AO 19,399 19,399 19,399 
			 EO 22,687 22,687 23,238 
			 HEO 30,009 30,009 30,009 
			 SEO 35,276 35,276 34,669 
			 G7 54,503 53,164 58,598 
			 G6 67,884 67,884 — 
			 SCS 73,000 73,000 — 
		
	
	I hope that you find this information useful.
	Letter from Tim Moss, dated 6 December 2013
	I am replying on behalf of Companies House to your Parliamentary Question tabled 3 December 2013, UIN 178167 to the Secretary of State For Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The median gross pay of staff in Companies House in each pay band is as follows:
	
		
			 Pay Band Median Gross Pay—White British (£) Median Gross Pay—All Other Ethnic Backgrounds (£) 
			 Band A 15,000 15,000 
			 Band B 19,728 19,728 
			 Band C 24,205 24,205 
			 Band D 32,119 32,119 
			 Band E 40,240 40,240 
			 Band F 51,700 51,700 
			 Band G 64,140 64,140 
		
	
	The pay levels of Companies House's Senior Civil Service Staff are detailed in its Annual Report, which can be found at:
	http://www.companieshouse.gov.uk/about/corporateDocuments/annualReport2012_13.shtml
	As almost all personnel in Companies House have achieved the maximum of their pay band, the gross median pay is the same for all staff regardless of their ethnic background.
	Letter from John Alty, dated 5 December 2013
	I am responding in respect of the Intellectual Property Office to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 03 December 2013, to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Intellectual Property Office is an Executive Agency and Trading Fund of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. The information provided reflects the data provided by people on a voluntary basis. The “not known” category captures people who have not declared their ethnicity.
	
		
			 Pay Band White (£) BAOME (£) Not known (£) 
			 A1 (AA) 15,451 15,451 15,451 
			 A2 (AA) 16,512 16,512 16,512 
			 A3 (AO) 18,995 17,580 17,487 
			 B1 (EO) 20,907 21,214 20,515 
			 B2 (EO) 23,880 23,428 23,569 
			 B2 ex (EO) 25,928 n/a 25,928 
			 B3 (HEO) 29,167 37,124 30,228 
			 C1 (SEO) 35,984 33,102 35,547 
		
	
	
		
			 C1 ex (SEO) 31,402 33,835 31,402 
			 C2 (Grade 7) 54,512 57,712 53,873 
			 C2 ex (Grade 7) 56,012 56,012 56,012 
			 D1 (Grade 6) 60,462 n/a 62,432 
		
	
	Letter from John Hirst, dated 5 December 2013
	I am replying on behalf of the Met Office to your Parliamentary Questions tabled on 3 December 2013, UIN 178167 to the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The Met Office does not operate a reward system based on pay bands. Rather it has a role based system where each role has a defined purpose, accountabilities and required professional skills. For the purpose of answering this question, these roles have been grouped together in bands that are broadly comparable to Civil Service grades. The information requested, based on these bandings and ethnicity information declared by staff, is given in the following table:
	
		
			 Grade Declared ethnicity Median pay (£) 
			 SCS White British 83,926 
			 6 Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 54,769 
			  White British 57,335 
			 7 Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 40,686 
			  White British 41,720 
			 SEO Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 31,815 
			  White British 34,812 
			 HEO Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 26,883 
			  White British 27,814 
			 EO Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 22,160 
			  White British 22,160 
			 AO Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 21,000 
			  White British 21,325 
		
	
	I hope this helps.
	Letter from Dr Vanessa Lawrence CB, dated 5 December 2013
	As Director General and Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey, I have been asked to respond to your Parliamentary Question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, “what the median gross pay is of staff in his department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.”
	The answer is that Ordnance Survey holds insufficient data to provide any reliable statistical comparison of median gross pay between white and other ethnic categories on a grade by grade basis.
	Ordnance Survey has just completed an Equal Pay audit and no justifiable evidence of lower pay in the non-white ethnic groups has been found. In 2008, Ordnance Survey introduced a short scale pay progression system in order to eradicate inequalities in pay.
	I hope this information is helpful.
	Letter from Peter Mason, dated 10 December 2013
	I am responding in respect of the National Measurement Office (NMO), an executive agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), to your Parliamentary Question tabled on 3 December 2013 asking what the median gross pay is of staff in offices of BIS and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified by their ethnicity.
	Because of the small size of the Agency (current headcount 78) and the number of different pay grades (7), I am advised that providing information on median gross pay in each pay band by ethnicity could make it possible to identify the pay of individual staff members, in contravention of the Data Protection Act. I regret, therefore, that we are unable to provide this information.
	Letter from Barbara Spicer, dated 4 December 2013
	Thank you for your question asking the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups. (178167)
	Please see table for detail on median salaries for the Skills Funding Agency by grade and ethnicity groupings.
	
		
			 Grade White (£) Black and Minority Ethnic (£) Not Stated (£) 
			 Apprentice 13,125 13,313 13,082 
			 Administrative 18,426 19,191 16,014 
			 Administrative+ 19,226 21,008 18,778 
			 Senior Administrative 22,374 22,308 23,336 
			 Supervisory/Support 24,038 23,435 22,890 
			 Technical Specialist 26,956 28,166 25,537 
			 Senior Technical Specialist 32,446 31,690 30,858 
			 Managerial 38,487 38,403 38,227 
			 Managerial 46,476 46,818 44,637 
			 Senior Managerial 55,449 59,725 54,362 
			 Senior Managerial 66,353 67,794 67,857 
			 Director 87,006 98,384 101,147 
		
	
	Letter from Dr Richard Judge, dated 10 December 2013
	The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills has asked me to reply to your question, what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups. My response relates to the Insolvency Service, an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
	The tables show the current median gross pay per Insolvency Service pay band and individual pay range for all employees and also the breakdown of employees who have and have not declared their ethnicity on our HR database—split into Black and Minority Ethnicity (BME) and white employees, along with those that are not known.
	
		
			 Median by Band 
			       £ 
			  INSS A (AA/AO) INSS B (E/HEO) INSS C (SEO) INSS D (G6/7) INSS L1 (E/HEO) SCS 
			 BME 20,115 26,518 44,442 55,700 35,066 None listed 
			 Not Known 19,080 25,074 44,442 55,735 28,755 90,043 
			 White British 19.080 25,074 44,442 56,665 35,066 93,167 
		
	
	
		
			 Median by Grade 
			 Grade BME (£) Not Known (£) White British (£) 
			 A1 (AA) 20,115 16,239 16,863 
			 A2 (AO) 22,681 19,080 19,447 
			 B1 (EO) 24,146 23,681 23,681 
			 B2 (HEO) 29,319 29,319 29,319 
		
	
	
		
			 B3 (HEO) 35,767 35,767 35,767 
			 C1 (SEO) 41,930 40,806 40,806 
			 C2 (SEO) 46,538 45,280 45,280 
			 D2 (Grade 7) 55,700 55,700 55,700 
			 D3 (Grade 6) None listed 72,325 74,435 
			 L1 (EO) 25,332 23,681 23,681 
			 L2 (HEO) 32,425 28,191 29,319 
			 L3 (HEO) 36,780 36,469 35,767 
			 SCS None listed 90,043 93,167 
			 1 Insolvency Service L pay band and grades are qualified Insolvency Examiners.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Jo Swinson: This information is contained in the Statistical Bulletin Tables (Table 32) of the 2013 Civil Service Statistics. This is available on the following page on the Office for National Statistics website:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-319802

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women.

Jo Swinson: The following table shows the proportion of men and women externally recruited to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills each financial year since 1 April 2010 to 31 August 2013.
	
		
			 Percentage 
			  Male Female 
			 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 53.8 46.2 
			 1 April 2011 to 31 March 2012 54.3 45.7 
			 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2013 48 52 
			 1 April 2013 to 31 August 20134 49.4 50.6

Royal Mail

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which companies or groups bought the three largest amounts of shares at Royal Mail's recent privatisation; what value of shares was bought by such companies or groups; and what the value of that shareholding was four hours after the initial flotation.

Michael Fallon: All investors in Royal Mail—whether individuals or institutions—have a legitimate expectation of privacy and it would not be appropriate to disclose the list of new shareholders allocated shares at IPO and the holdings.
	The top three shareholders allocated shares at IPO were considered well-informed, longer-term investors and 85% of the shares allocated to institutions were allocated to shareholders of similar status. The highest number of shares received by a single institution through the IPO was less than 2% of the overall number of shares in the company.

Skilled Workers

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will make an assessment of the impact of levels of skills used in the workplace on wage progression.

Matthew Hancock: The Employer Skills Survey for 2011 provides information on the skill levels of the UK work force and the extent to which employers report that their workers have the skills required to do their job. The report is published at the following link, but it provides no evidence on the link with wage progression.
	http://www.ukces.org.uk/assets/ukces/docs/publications/ukces-employer-skills-survey-11.pdf
	Pursuant to the answer I gave to the hon. Member on 26 November 2013, Official Report, columns 214-15W, information on the mean hourly wage of full-time employees aged 19-59/64 by level of highest qualification held in England (based on the Labour Force Survey) is published in a Supplementary Table to a Statistical First Release. This table is published at the following link:
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/F117C12B-B33D-4C5F-A273-F119E0F4E68A/0/LFS_supplementary_Mean_Hourly_Wage_April13.xls
	http://www.thedataservice.org.uk/Statistics/fe_data_library/labour_force_survey
	BIS Research Paper numbers 45 and 53 provide the Department's latest estimates of the wage returns to higher qualifications and to intermediate and low-level vocational qualifications respectively. These reports are published at the following links:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/higher-education-qualifications-returns-and-benefits
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/r/11-1282-returns-intermediate-and-low-level-vocational-qualifications
	For example, BIS Research Paper 45 shows that individuals with an advanced apprenticeship earn around 22% more in employment than similar individuals with Level 2 qualifications. Those with an intermediate apprenticeship earn 12% more in employment than similar individuals with Level 1 or other Level 2 qualifications.

Skilled Workers

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department is taking to assist employers and trades unions to improve levels of workplace skills.

Matthew Hancock: Creating apprenticeships is a top priority for this Department. In 2013-14, we have allocated £1.566 billion. Most recent figures show there are currently 858,900 on our apprenticeships programmes.
	In 2012, this Department launched the Employer Ownership Pilots aimed at inviting employers to come together to develop new skills approaches across their sector or local areas bringing together work experience, apprenticeships and training opportunities for their workers. A budget of £340 million has been allocated.
	This Department supports unionlearn, the training arm of the TUC. In 2013-14, unionlearn is supporting 44 learning projects with individual trade unions aimed at encouraging members to engage in learning ranging from basic skills through to level 3 and into higher education. A budget of £13.2 million for the period April 2014 to March 2015 has been allocated.

Skills Funding Agency

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  if he plans further staff reductions in the Skills Funding Agency; and what assessment he has made of the effect of such reductions on the Agency;
	(2)  if he will undertake an equality impact assessment of the effects a reduction in staff in the Skills Funding Agency would have on the services currently provided;
	(3)  if he will undertake an equality impact assessment of restructuring and staff reductions in the Skills Funding Agency.

Matthew Hancock: The chief executive of Skills Funding Agency (SFA) is responsible for managing the work of the agency within budget. It is important that the agency can operate efficiently and effectively in its role of ensuring that public funding for adult education and training is allocated to further education colleges, training providers and local authorities. This reflects the Government's ongoing commitment to give the further education sector freedom to deliver the education and skills provision needed within their local areas and has resulted in further changes being made to the structure and staffing of the agency.
	The chief executive of SFA is responsible for all matters concerning the staffing and operations of the SFA. I have therefore asked Barbara Spicer, the interim chief executive, to reply to the hon. Member direct and a copy of her letter will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Students: Finance

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether students taking up the new places in higher education announced in the Autumn Statement 2013 will attract student maintenance support on the same basis as other English students in higher education.

David Willetts: All eligible students attending full-time courses in the 2014-15 academic year will be able to apply for the full-time maintenance support package. Decisions on the student support package for 2015-16 will be made and announced in the new year in line with the usual timetable.

Students: Loans

John Denham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the new higher education student places announced in the Autumn Statement 2013 will attract fee loan support on the same basis as all other English students.

David Willetts: All eligible students undertaking full-time courses in the 2014-15 academic year will be able to apply for fee loans to meet the costs of their tuition. Decisions on the student support package for 2015-16 will be made and announced in the new year in line with the usual timetable.

UK Space Agency

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent steps his Department has taken to promote the work of the UK Space Agency.

David Willetts: The UK Space Agency is an executive agency of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). The Communications team in the UK Space Agency and the BIS Press Office team work together closely to convey the work of the UK Space Agency in the media and to the general public in order to achieve the outcomes centred on economic growth set out in the Civil Space Strategy. This will be particularly important as Britain's first European Space Agency astronaut, Tim Peake, prepares for his flight to the International Space Station in 2015 which will provide an excellent platform for a campaign to promote the UK space programme including education and outreach.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Alcoholic Drinks: Misuse

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to assist local authorities to reduce anti-social behaviour resulting from excess consumption of alcohol bought at off-licenses; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Baker: The Government has introduced a range of measures to help tackle alcohol-related crime and disorder. It has radically reformed the Licensing Act 2003 to rebalance it in favour of local communities. Key measures implemented in 2012 include the new early morning alcohol restriction orders and the late night levy powers. These allow local authorities to restrict the sale of alcohol at night, including off-licence sales, and to allow local authorities to require premises selling alcohol late at night to contribute to the costs of policing the late night economy. Other recent reforms have increased local powers and made it easier to review, close down or impose conditions on problem premises. The Government will legislate by April 2014 to tackle the worst excesses of heavily discounted alcohol by banning sales below the level of duty plus VAT. Through the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill, currently before Parliament, the Government aims to simplify and increase the flexibility of tools and powers available to local communities to tackle antisocial behaviour.

Entry Clearances: Shipping

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  after what period of time a commercial ship is required to depart a port following the embarkation of any new foreign crew who undertake paid employment but who entered the UK without a visa;
	(2)  what visa requirements apply to foreign seafarers entering the UK prior to embarkation on a ship.

Mark Harper: Seamen who are nationals or citizens of countries or territories listed in Appendix 1 of the Immigration Rules normally require visas to enter the UK if they are under contract to join a ship due to leave British waters, unless they hold a seaman's identity document issued in line with the International Labour Organisation Convention No. 108. Seamen from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) seeking entry to the UK to join a ship that will remain wholly or largely in UK waters require permission to work unless the ship is carrying out mainland cabotage in accordance with European Council regulation 3577/92/EC.
	There is no specific time limit for ships to leave the UK following embarkation of any new non-EEA crew but such crew members must leave the UK on the ship in question within a reasonable period of time depending on the circumstances of the ship and leave to enter for the purpose of joining a ship can be granted for up to six months.

Human Trafficking

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment her Department has made of the success of the human trafficking free phone number 0800 783 2589 since it was launched in June 2011; and how widely that number is publicised.

James Brokenshire: The Metropolitan police free phone number is used for reporting trafficking concerns to the specialist human trafficking unit. At the time of launch the number was publicised through a non-governmental organisation developed poster campaign aimed at target communities and partner agencies where potential victims or those who support them might see the number. It is also available on a range of websites.
	No formal assessment has been made of the Metropolitan police hotline. However, since its launch in 2011 it has received 133 calls reporting trafficking suspicions or seeking anti-trafficking advice.

Human Trafficking

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children under 18 years have been referred to the National Referral Mechanism (NRM) as being trafficked for (a) domestic servitude and (b) other forms of exploitation since the NRM came into operation.

James Brokenshire: Between 1 April 2009 and 3 December 2013 there were 1,190 minors referred into the National Referral Mechanism (NRM). Of these, 105 were recorded as cases of domestic servitude. There were 1,085 child referrals recorded as other types of exploitation.

Human Trafficking

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether National Referral Mechanism (NRM) statistics are adjusted to reflect circumstances in which a victim of trafficking is initially given a negative NRM decision but then receives a subsequent decision that they are conclusively a victim of trafficking either in a court of law or as a result of a competent authority settling before a judicial review.

James Brokenshire: The National Referral Mechanism (NRM) captures amendments to trafficking decision outcomes. Quarterly NRM statistics reflect the status of a person's case at the time of publication.

Immigration Controls

Andrew Stephenson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people detained by the Border Force in each of the last five years have absconded from bail.

Mark Harper: The information requested is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Immigration Controls: Aviation

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many UK Border Force personnel were assigned to and given specific training for meeting passengers arriving into the UK assessed as high-risk on scheduled flights in 2012-13.

Mark Harper: holding answer 3 December 2013
	All Border Force operational staff have the training required to meet passengers arriving into the UK assessed as high-risk on both scheduled and unscheduled flights. If the risk assessment determines that arrest or restraint may be required, suitably qualified arrest trained officers will meet the flight.

Immigration Controls: Heathrow Airport

Brian H Donohoe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment she has made of the length of passport control delays at Heathrow airport.

Mark Harper: Since July 2012 Heathrow Border Force has continually exceeded the set service level agreement it has with Heathrow Airport Ltd, which is to process 95% of European economic area (EEA) passengers within 25 minutes, and 95% non-EEA passengers within 45 minutes.
	During October 2013, they processed 100% of EEA passengers and 99.73% of non-EEA passengers within these service standards.

Passports: Malta

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations she has made to (a) her Maltese counterpart and (b) the European Commission on the decision by the Maltese Government to offer Maltese passports for sale to non-EU citizens.

Mark Harper: The Government is clear that EU citizens who benefit from the right to free movement must adhere to the responsibilities this brings with it. The Government does not tolerate the abuse of free movement rights and is working at a domestic level and with other member states to tackle such abuse.

Surveillance

Dominic Raab: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases the Investigatory Powers Tribunal has awarded costs to individuals found to have been victims of unlawful surveillance in the last five years.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 9 December 2013
	Making a complaint to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal is free of charge, although the Tribunal does not meet any legal fees incurred, such as where complainants have instructed a solicitor or legal advisor. However, under section 67(7) of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000, the Tribunal has the power to make any such award of compensation or other order as it considers fit.
	No compensation has been awarded in the period 2009 to 2013. Compensation was last awarded in 2008 when £2,500 in compensation was awarded to a complainant (reference IPT/06/31/CH). Information on that complaint can be found on the IPT website.

Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures currently in force and which have already been renewed once will expire in January 2014.

James Brokenshire: holding answer 9 December 2013
	The number of Terrorism Prevention and Investigatory Measures (TPIM) notices in force was last reported to Parliament in the last quarterly statement on 12 September 2013. The next reporting period ended on 30 November and will be reported to Parliament shortly.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has taken to promote women's rights in Afghanistan.

Hugh Robertson: The UK has been forthright in its promotion of the full participation of women in all aspects of Afghan society, which is fundamental to securing a stable and prosperous future Afghanistan. We regularly raise the protection and promotion of women's rights with the Afghan Government and wider Afghan authorities. During her visit to Afghanistan early last month, the Senior Minister of State, my right hon. and noble Friend, the Baroness Warsi, underlined the importance of upholding historic gains in all areas since 2001, including human rights, education and health, with Deputy Foreign Minister, Mr Ershad Ahmadi, and other Government representatives. The Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Justine Greening), also stressed the importance of this issue with President Karzai during her visit to Afghanistan at the end of last month. We will continue to raise women's rights at all levels.
	The three-year review of delivery of the UK National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security (2010-2013) was laid in Parliament in November and includes details of the activities undertaken by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Defence to support Afghan women over the last three years. The Secretary of State for International Development has also recently announced a new £7.5 million programme to support women's political participation at the provincial level and a new £3 million programme to help eliminate violence against women and girls in Afghanistan.

Afzal Amin

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether Afzal Amin is employed as a special adviser in his Department.

Hugh Robertson: Mr Afzal Amin is not employed as a special adviser in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Ascension Island

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the baseline assessment is for Ascension Island fisheries against which trends and sustainability of stocks of target and by-catch species are measured.

Mark Simmonds: Fisheries management is a devolved issue and as such is the responsibility of the Ascension Island Government. Commercial fishing has been licensed since 2010 on a trial basis with no available baseline assessments. The Ascension Island Government is reviewing the future management of its fisheries with a view to introducing a new standards and research capacity to assure the sustainable management and protection of fish stocks. All existing licences expire at the end of 2013 and no new licences will be issued until a new regime has been put in place.

Ascension Island

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total number of fish of each species, caught in Ascension Island's fisheries and landed was in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012 and (d) 2013 to date.

Mark Simmonds: Fisheries management is a devolved issue and as such is the responsibility of the Ascension Island Government. A pilot commercial fishery was set up in October 2010. Data from before this period are unavailable. The following figures are in metric tons.
	
		
			  Metric tons 
			 Yellow Fin Tuna  
			 2010 3.77 
			 2011 133.67 
			 2012 83.05 
			 2013 (to date) 28.63 
			   
			 Bigeye Tuna  
			 2010 116.67 
			 2011 2250.19 
			 2012 1655.15 
			 2013 (to date) 1236.30 
			   
			 Albacore Tuna  
			 2010 1.44 
			 2011 71.12 
			 2012 39.64 
			 2013 (to date) 25.08 
			   
			 Swordfish  
			 2010 13.79 
			 2011 146.88 
			 2012 135.79 
		
	
	
		
			 2013 (to date) 160.38 
			   
			 Sailfish  
			 2010 0 
			 2011 0 
			 2012 0 
			 2013 (to date) 10.14 
			   
			 Black Marlin  
			 2010 1.04 
			 2011 24.51 
			 2012 20.43 
			 2013 to date 1.04 
			   
			 Striped Marlin  
			 2010 1.00 
			 2011 7.51 
			 2012 3.62 
			 2013 0.81 
			   
			 Blue Marlin  
			 2010 6.1 
			 2011 94.21 
			 2012 28.16 
			 2013 (to date) 13.33 
			   
			 Other  
			 2010 2.18 
			 2011 135.63 
			 2012 262.19 
			 2013 (to date) 66.99

Ascension Island

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for what species fishing licences in Ascension Island's fisheries have been issued in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013 and (e) 2014; and what requirements are included in these licences in respect of (i) quotas (ii) species type caught and landed and (iii) time spent fishing.

Mark Simmonds: Fisheries management is a devolved issue and as such is the responsibility of the Ascension Island Government. Licences are granted to ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna) registered vessels on application. In the years 2010 to 2013 licences were granted for all species of tuna (Albacore, Bigeye, Yellow Fin) and bill fish (swordfish, striped marlin, black marlin, blue marlin). The requirements in the licences are consistent with guidelines established by ICCAT, and all vessels licensed must comply fully with ICCAT regulations on quotas per member. All vessels are required to report weekly to ICCAT and to fishery officials on catch data, species and time fishing.
	The Ascension Island Government is reviewing its fishery. All existing licences expire at the end of 2013 and no new licences will be issued until a new regime has been put in place.

Ascension Island

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many vessels held fishing licences for the Ascension Island's fisheries in (a) 2010, (b) 2011 and (c) 2012; how many vessels hold such licences for (i) 2013 and (ii) 2014; and what the role is of the UK Government in the issuing of those licences.

Mark Simmonds: I refer the hon. Member to my answer on 20 May 2013, Official Report, 507W, UIN number 156036. No licences have been issued for 2014. Licences are issued by the Ascension Island Government only. Fisheries management is a devolved issue and as such is the responsibility of the Ascension Island Government.

Ascension Island

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many fishing vessels are registered in Ascension Island.

Mark Simmonds: None. Ascension Island does not have a shipping register.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women;
	(2)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Hugh Robertson: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Management Board consists of nine executive and two non-executive members. The gender breakdown is (a) six male and three female executive board members and (b) one male and one female non-executive board members. The FCO does not monitor the ethnic composition of boards separately from its general monitoring of the representation of different ethnic groups.

Egypt

Crispin Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what steps he will take to monitor the independence of any inquiry into the violent suppression of the demonstrations in Cairo in August 2013; and if he will make a statement; [R]
	(2)  when he expects an independent inquiry into the violent suppression of the demonstrations in Cairo in August 2013 to (a) begin and (b) report. [R]

Hugh Robertson: The Egyptian National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) has launched unofficial investigations into the clearances of the sit-ins at Rabaa al Adawiyya and Al-Nahda on 14 August, and the violence on 6 October. These investigations are expected to conclude in the coming weeks.
	The Egyptian Government has also begun investigating some specific events in August, such as at the Abu Zaabal prison incident. This is a step in the right direction, but is focused on only one incident.
	We continue to press the Egyptian Government for there to be an independent inquiry into the violence in August. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), discussed this with Egyptian Foreign Minister Fahmy in September. We will continue to raise it, including the investigation into the death of British cameraman Mick Deane.
	We will monitor the results of the unofficial investigation by the Egyptian National Council for Human Rights (NCHR) and any Egyptian Government inquiries.

El Salvador

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the arrest of Xiomara Cruz in El Salvador; and if he will make a statement.

Hugo Swire: The British Government is aware of the case of Glenda Xiomara Cruz, a Salvadoran national currently in detention for aggravated homicide. The recently reopened British embassy in San Salvador cannot interfere with the laws and legal processes of another country. However, we do pay particular attention to human rights issues, including fair trials and prisoner conditions, as part of our bilateral dialogue with the Government of El Salvador.

English Language: Education

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what role Accreditation UK has in monitoring the terms and conditions of employment of staff of language schools as part of its responsibility for quality assurance of UK-based ELT providers.

Hugo Swire: Accreditation UK is a specialist voluntary quality assurance scheme for providers of English language teaching (ELT) services in the UK. The accreditation scheme executive board (EB) is responsible for the development, implementation and monitoring of the scheme.
	Full details of the accreditation and inspection process are published in the Accreditation UK Handbook:
	http://www.britishcouncil.org/2012-13_accreditation_UK_handbook.pdf

Middle East

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of progress on Middle East Peace negotiations, following the resignation of the Palestinian peace negotiators on 14 November 2013.

Hugh Robertson: I can confirm that the middle east peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians are continuing with the goal of reaching a final status agreement next year. US Secretary of State John Kerry met with both parties on 5 December. As I made clear during my recent visit to the region, the UK strongly supports the talks and stands ready to do all we can over the coming weeks and months to support the parties and the US in their efforts to achieve a lasting two-state solution.

Occupied Territories

Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps his Department has taken to dissuade the Israeli Government from building more settlements that lie within the established pre-1967 boundaries.

Hugh Robertson: I expressed the UK's strong concern over recent settlement announcements during my visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, 4-6 November.

Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the recent Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Simmonds: I hosted the second Overseas Territories Joint Ministerial Council in London on 26 November. The focus of the Council this year was on action to support economic diversification, jobs and economic growth. We agreed an ambitious agenda including steps to promote further opportunities for business, trade and investment in the Territories. We also agreed to work together on education and training; green energy and the environment; stronger links with the wider world; international financial services regulation; governance; security and self-determination.
	I look forward to discussing progress with members of the Foreign Affairs Committee on 17 December.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups;
	(2)  what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Hugh Robertson: Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) pay is determined by a range of factors including grade, performance, and length of time in employment. Where diversity data highlights discrepancies between groups, we take appropriate action to understand and address any issues. We next plan to carry out an equal pay audit in early 2014 as part of a refresh of the FCO's pay and reward strategy.
	An officer's ethnic minority status is self declared. The following tables show the median gross salary for FCO staff taken from the FCO HR Database at 31 October 2013. The figures shown relate only to staff who have made a declaration of their ethnicity. All figures are given in £s.
	
		
			 £000 
			 Grade BME1 White 
			 Al 18,156 18,156 
			 A2 20,847 21,334 
		
	
	
		
			 B3 24,166 24,930 
			 C4 26,489 28,190 
			 C5 33,075 35,319 
			 D6 45,181 43,719 
			 D7 54,883 54,883 
			 SMS1 61,285 65,771 
			 SMS2 84,840 85,998 
			 SMS3/4 2— 127,260 
		
	
	
		
			 £000 
			 Grade Female Male 
			 Al 18,156 18,156 
			 A2 20,214 19,904 
			 B3 24,633 24,282 
			 C4 27,788 28,055 
			 C5 35,319 35,818 
			 D6 44,759 45,607 
			 D7 54,883 55,396 
			 SMS1 64,552 65,949 
			 SMS2 84,840 87,002 
			 SMS3/4 118,170 127,883 
		
	
	The following tables show the median gross salary for FCO Services taken from the FCO HR Database at 31 October 2013.
	
		
			 £000 
			 Grade BME1 White 
			 Al 18,070 18,070 
			 A2 21,686 19,609 
			 B3 21,932 21,932 
			 TPB3 22,687 22,442 
			 C4 25,147 25,273 
			 TPB4 30,951 30,187 
			 C5 32,843 33,470 
			 TPB5 40,874 40,408 
			 D6 2— 45,524 
			 D7 2— 53,318 
		
	
	
		
			 £000 
			 Grade Female Male 
			 Al 18,070 18,070 
			 A2 18,625 21,604 
			 B3 21,932 21,932 
			 TPB3 22,529 22,442 
			 C4 25,273 25,273 
			 TPB4 27,033 30,770 
			 C5 33,406 33,006 
			 TPB5 34,369 40,600 
			 D6 44,260 46,935 
			 D7 57,432 57,000 
			 1 Black and minority ethnic groups 2 Sample too small for disclosure. 
		
	
	Further diversity data, including the proportion of employees by ethnicity and grade, can be found in the FCO:s Diversity and Equality Report 2013 see:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/193240/FCO_Diversity_and_Equality_Report _2013__as_published__26_April_2013.pdf

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women.

Hugh Robertson: The proportion of staff recruited by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) since 5 May 2010 that are (a) men and (b) women is:
	
		
			  Percentage 
			 (a) Men 53 
			 (b) Women 47 
		
	
	All appointments to the FCO are made through open and fair competition, in strict accordance with the recruitment principles of the Civil Service Commissioners.
	The figures cover permanent and fixed term recruitment in the UK only. Data for recruitment by our Posts overseas for local staff positions is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Sudan

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to support the convening of a Consultative Conference on the Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement.

Mark Simmonds: An inclusive Consultative Conference should have been held within 30 days of the conclusion of the Eastern Sudan Peace Agreement in October 2006, to build consensus on the arrangements for its implementation. The failure by the Government of Sudan to implement this and many other aspects of the agreement has contributed to growing disillusionment with the peace process and rising tensions in the east that could lead to a return to conflict if left unaddressed. We have regularly pressed the Government of Sudan to honour their commitments under the agreement, most recently during a visit to Eastern Sudan by the British ambassador in October 2013 when he encouraged government and other parties to address the development needs of the region as a matter of urgency.

ATTORNEY-GENERAL

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney-General 
	(1)  how many of the Law Officers' Departments (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women;
	(2)  how many of the Law Officers' Departments' (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Oliver Heald: The following table contains details on the breakdown between non-executive and executive board members, available ethnicity data and the gender composition of each of the Law Officers' Departments management boards.
	
		
			  Board members Gender Ethnicity1 
			 Department Non executive Executive Male Female White British Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups 
			 Attorney-General's Office 0 7 4 3 2 1 
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department 7 7 7 7 10  
			 HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate 3 1 3 1 2 2 
			 Serious Fraud Office 3 13 12 4 8 - 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 4 4 6 2 7 1 
			 1 There is no requirement for staff members, including board members, to officially declare ethnicity. The available data therefore covers only information that has been declared.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney-General what the median gross pay is of staff in the Law Officers' Departments and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Oliver Heald: The following table contains data on the median gross pay for staff by each pay band in the Law Officers' Departments, covering only those staff members who have declared their ethnicity. We have not provided data covering AGO and HMCPSI because the numbers of staff in each grade for both Departments is below five and the information could therefore be used to identify individual members of staff.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Treasury Solicitor's Department Serious Fraud Office Crown Prosecution Service 
			 Grade BME1 White BME1 White BME1 White 
			 AA — — — — 19,958 16,810 
			 AO 21,974 21,974 22,175 22,175 20,464 19,379 
			 EO 24,371 25,286 24,395 24,825 27,862 25,708 
			 HEO 29,965 30,230 29,753 29,753 31,653 30,772 
			 SEO 38,543 35,586 34,700 35,940 39,732 38,756 
			 G7 48,737 47,557 48,372 51,041 49,372 49,744 
			 G6 61,521 61,521 64,688 65,715 75,229 71,905 
			 SCS 74,405 75,229 — 64,688 95,171 91,319 
			 Legal Officer 39,173 42,763 — — — — 
			 Legal Trainee 26,364 24,331 — — — — 
			 1 Black, Asian and other minority ethnic group.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney-General what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in the Law Officers' Departments.

Oliver Heald: The following table contains data on the median gross pay for men and women by each pay band in the Law Officers' Departments. We have not provided data covering AGO and HMCPSI because the numbers of staff in each grade for both Departments are below five and the information could therefore be used to identify individual members of staff.
	
		
			 £ 
			  Treasury Solicitor's Department Serious Fraud Office Crown Prosecution Service 
			 Grade Male Female Male Female Male Female 
			 AA — — — — 16,886 12,312 
			 AO 21,974 21,974 22,175 22,175 19,732 18,808 
			 EO 24,844 24,844 23,808 24.761 26,761 25,070 
			 HEO 30,230 30,156 29,753 29,753 31,583 30,526 
			 SEO 37,382 35,586 37,997 35,691 39,744 37,652 
			 G7 48,737 48,808 51,076 49,571 54,066 44,714 
			 G6 61,738 61,521 66,138 65,044 72,214 70,194 
			 SCS 75,627 75,676 82,990 80,099 96,355 90,351 
			 Legal Officer 42,763 42,763 — — — — 
			 Legal Trainee 25,348 24,331 — — — —

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Attorney-General what proportion of staff recruited to the Law Officers' Departments since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women.

Oliver Heald: The information requested is contained in the following table.
	
		
			 Proportion of staff recruited by gender 
			 Percentage 
			  Male Female 
			 Treasury Solicitor's Department (TSol)1 37 63 
			 Serious Fraud Office 61 39 
			 Crown Prosecution Service 35 65 
			 1 TSol data also covers the Attorney-General's Office and HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Atos Healthcare

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many doctors Atos employed in (a) Gloucester constituency, (b) Gloucestershire and (c) England in each of the last five years.

Michael Penning: Currently, Atos Healthcare employs one doctor in Gloucester Medical Assessment Centre.
	Atos Healthcare does not employ any doctors in the wider community of Gloucester or Gloucestershire.
	Atos Healthcare has used other doctors, as necessary, from outside the area, but these are sessional and not directly employed doctors.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Michael Penning: There are four male and no female executive board members.
	There are three male and one female non-executive board members.
	In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government Lead Non-Executive, Lord Browne, noted that whereas “FTSE100 companies only have 12.5 per cent of board members who are women, more than 36 per cent of government non-executives are women.”
	The Department is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public we serve, at all levels.

Disclosure of Information

Kate Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what monitoring his Department carries out to ensure it complies with requests for information to be supplied in an accessible format.

Esther McVey: The Department takes very seriously its duty under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments and provide a fully accessible service appropriate to the needs of individuals. We take a variety of steps to provide help and support to enable individuals to engage with DWP.
	Requests for information to be provided in an alternative format are tailored to the personal needs of the individual and will depend on which service is being used or which benefit is being claimed. The support offered by DWP includes a variety of communication methods: face to face contact on our premises; home visits; telephony; online services; and written communications in alternative formats such as large text. A request for an alternative format from an individual will be detailed on their customer record of the appropriate benefit system to ensure requests are carried out.
	While we strive to deliver excellent service to all who need to use our services, DWP conducts millions of customer interactions each year, face to face, over the telephone and by correspondence and, with an operation on this scale, it is inevitable that on occasion things may go wrong. Although the Department does not undertake any formal monitoring around accessible formats, we do investigate instances where an error has occurred and take steps to put things right.

Electronic Government

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which Department has lead policy responsibility for the Government Gateway.

Michael Penning: The overarching policy for Government Gateway is owned by Cabinet Office (CO) and Government Digital Service (GDS).
	Government Gateway provides identity solutions, Identity Assurance and the policy of identity Assurance are owned by CO and GDS.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions 
	(1)  if he will rank each English local authority by the percentage change in the number of housing benefit and local housing allowance claims from April 2010 to April 2013;
	(2)  if he will rank each English local authority by the (a) number of and (b) percentage change in claims for housing benefit and local housing allowance made by people in work between April 2010 and April 2013.

Steve Webb: The information requested in relation to housing benefit (HB) claimants will be placed in the House of Commons Library.
	The economic status of all HB recipients is not available and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The information requested is only available for HB recipients whose claim is not passported: that is for those who do not receive either income support, jobseeker's allowance (income-based), employment and support allowance (income-based), or pension credit (guaranteed credit). This information has been included in the tables provided.
	Detailed statistics on housing benefit and local housing allowance can be found at:
	https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk
	Guidance on how to extract the information required can be found at:
	https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Stat-Xplore_User_Guide.htm

Housing Benefit: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many families in Peterborough City Council area have been assisted with discretionary funding as a result of changes in Housing Benefit rules introduced in April 2013; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: The Department has been collating six-monthly returns detailing DHP awards made by local authorities and is currently quality assuring those returns. This includes the number of awards granted, but not specifically the number of families who have claimed from the DHP fund.
	This year the Government contribution to discretionary housing payments has been increased to £180 million. As part of this, local authorities are able to bid for funding from a £20 million reserve fund. The scheme is open to bids until 3 February 2014.

Housing Benefit: Social Rented Housing

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2013, Official Report, column 659W, on housing benefit: social rented housing, if he will estimate the number of such households which will enter poverty.

Steve Webb: This information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Legal Costs

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what amount his Department has spent on lawyers' fees in the present Parliament.

Michael Penning: The Department for Work and Pensions does not retain financial data by Parliament or parliamentary session. The following table details the Department's spend on external legal costs incurred for the financial years 2010-11, 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2013 to date. These figures include all invoices for fees authorised by the Department's internal Legal Services, including but not limited to the case management services provided by the Treasury Solicitor's Department, external legal representation and external training and professional development of the Department's Legal Service.
	It is not possible to provide a more detailed breakdown of the fees without exceeding the disproportionate cost threshold.
	
		
			 DWP External Legal Costs (inclusive of VAT where applicable) 
			  £million 
			 2010-11 13.59 
			 2011-12 14.45 
			 2012-13 9.38 
			 2013 to date 4.99

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Michael Penning: The median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women in each pay band in the Department for Work and Pensions is as follows:
	
		
			 Grade Men (£) Women (£) 
			 AA 15,558 15,582 
			 AO 18,221 18,534 
			 EO 24,135 24,256 
			 HEO 29,183 29,154 
			 SEO 35,359 35,073 
			 G7 49,309 48,035 
			 G6 61,458 60,619 
			 SCSI 77,546 74,022 
			 SCS2 110,284 98,887 
			 SCS3 150,000 125,000

Pensioners: Income

Michael Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of pensioners with a pension income below 60 per cent of median income (a) on the latest date for which data is available and (b) in each of the last 10 years.

Steve Webb: Estimates of the number and proportion of pensioners with household income below 60% of median household income are published in the National Statistics Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. HBAI uses household income adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, to provide a proxy for standard of living. This information is captured using the Family Resources Survey.
	The figures for 2011-12 (the latest period for which figures are available) and each of the last 10 years can be found in the latest HBAI publication, available at the following link:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/households-below-average-income-hbai-199495-to-201112
	(ISBN 978-1-78153-531-8).
	Relevant figures can be found in Tables 6.1tr-6.4tr (on pages 206-209).
	Household income refers to net disposable income which includes earnings from employment and self-employment, state support, income from occupational and private pensions, investment income and other sources. Income tax payments, national insurance contributions, council tax/domestic rates and some other payments are deducted from incomes.
	Pensioners are defined as all those adults above state pension age. Prior to 6 April 2010, women reached the state pension age at 60. From 6 April 2010, the qualifying age for women has been gradually increasing. Therefore the age groups included in these statistics have changed over time. The changes do not affect the state pension age for men, currently 65.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

Michael Penning: Since 5 May 2010, 46% of the Departments recruits were men and 54% were women.

Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Jobcentre Plus advisers have been trained in the use of and give guidance on the universal credit system; and when he expects all advisers to have received such training.

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Upper Bann (David Simpson), 5 December 2013, Official Report, column 769W. All our Jobcentre Plus advisers who are currently delivering universal credit have received training and guidance on the new system. We will ensure that future training requirements are aligned with the plans for expansion of the universal credit service, outlined in the recent ministerial written statement.

Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the extra costs to local authorities of assisting claimants to use the universal credit system.

Esther McVey: The Department recognises that local authorities will have to work with claimants to prepare them for universal credit and we know there will be an impact on local authorities.
	We will continue to consult with local authorities to fully understand what the implications will be for delivery of universal credit.

Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the universal credit pathfinder programme to be extended to (a) couples and (b) families.

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the recent written ministerial statement, in which the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced that, we will expand our current pathfinder service and develop functionality so that from next summer we progressively start to take claims for universal credit from couples and, in the autumn, from families.
	Once safely tested in live universal credit areas, we will also expand the roll-out to cover more of the north-west of England. This will enable us to learn from the live running of universal credit at scale and for more claimant types, including the more vulnerable and complex.

Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the value of the IT systems that will be replaced by the universal credit IT project.

Esther McVey: The Department's existing IT systems will continue to be used to assess and pay claimants for existing benefits for a number of years and in some cases will continue to provide a platform for other benefits beyond universal credit implementation.

Universal Credit

Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to his statement of 5 December 2013, on universal credit progress, how passported benefits will be included in the Universal Credit pathfinder programme.

Esther McVey: I refer the hon. Member to the written answer given by the then Minister of State, my hon. Friend the Member for Fareham (Mr Hoban), to the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Mr Byrne) on 13 May 2013, Official Report, column 69W.

Universal Credit

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent estimate he has made of the cost of the ICT system to administer universal credit.

Esther McVey: The most recent estimate of the cost of the ICT system is set out in the NAO report Universal Credit: Early progress, HC 621, published on 5 September 2013.

Universal Credit: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effect on the implementation of universal credit in Northern Ireland of changes to the timescale for the introduction of universal credit in England.

Esther McVey: No assessment has been made.
	Officials from my Department work closely with their colleagues in NISSA to keep up to date on developments of mutual interest.

Work Capability Assessment

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps he is taking to make work capability assessments more responsive to the needs of people with mental health problems.

Michael Penning: A number of changes have been implemented to ensure that the work capability assessment assesses those with mental health problems as fairly and accurately as possible;
	Mental Function Champions have been in place across the country since July 2011 to spread best practice and improve understanding of mental health conditions.
	We have changed the ESA50 questionnaire which claimants fill in to make it more user friendly for people with mental health conditions.
	Safeguards are in place to ensure claimants with mental health conditions are treated fairly. For example we do not disallow an ESA claim where an individual with a mental health condition has not returned their ESA50 questionnaire.
	An Evidence Based Review has been conducted to try to further improve the descriptors for people with mental health conditions. A final report will be published before the end of the year.
	Dr Litchfield has also been carrying out the fourth independent review of the WCA which will be published this year. We await his findings and will consider any recommendations he makes for further improvements, including those concerning mental health.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Afzal Amin

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what contact there has been between Ministers and civil servants in his Department and Afzal Amin.

Stephen Williams: My Department has liaised with representatives of the Curzon Institute/Curzon Education over our first world war commemoration programme on the contribution of Commonwealth nations.
	My noble Friend, the Minister for Faith and Communities, launched the programme on 8 November in an event at the Royal United Services Institute. More information about the project can be found at:
	www.gov.uk/government/news/commonwealth-contribution-to-first-world-war-to-be-commemorated

Community Relations

Jim Dobbin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress he can report on the cross-Government task force on tackling extremism and radicalisation; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Williams: The Secretary of State for the Home Department, the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), announced on 4 December the new measures proposed by the Extremism Task Force to tackle extremism and radicalism across the UK. The final report is available in the Library of the House and on the Government's website at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/263181/ETF_FINAL.pdf

Council Tax: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the level of council tax arrears in the Peterborough city council area was in each year since 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Brandon Lewis: The cumulative level of council tax arrears .in Peterborough city council area (at the end of March in each year) is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			 2005 3,833,000 
			 2006 4,182,000 
			 2007 4,749,000 
			 2008 5,162,000 
			 2009 6,181,000 
			 2010 7,169,000 
			 2011 7,979,000 
			 2012 8,984,000 
			 2013 9,607,000 
		
	
	The figures are calculated by adding the amount of council tax that was uncollected within the year to the council tax arrears brought forward, less any receipts received in respect of previous years' arrears, less any council tax written off as uncollectable.
	In our best practice document, “50 ways to save”, we listed improving council tax collection rates and reducing arrears as a key way of making sensible savings to help keep overall council tax bills down and protect frontline services. Every penny of council tax that is not collected means a higher council tax for the law-abiding citizen who does pay on time.
	It is important that councils are sympathetic to those in genuine hardship, are proportionate in enforcement and do not overuse bailiffs. However, these figures show that there is a significant source of income for councils, which councils could use to support frontline service or cut council tax bills.

Curzon Institute

Sheila Gilmore: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what contracts his Department has signed with the Curzon Institute; when those contracts were signed; and what services were provided under those contacts.

Stephen Williams: The Department for Communities and Local Government has signed one contract with Curzon Education, a limited community interest company (formerly the Curzon Institute), in October 2013, for the delivery of 50 lectures on the contribution made by Commonwealth nations to the first world war.
	More information can be found on my Department's website:
	www.gov.uk/government/news/commonwealth-contribution-to-first-world-war-to-be-commemorated

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women;
	(2)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Brandon Lewis: The executive and non-executive members of the Department's management board are listed at:
	www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-communities-and-local-government/groups/dclg-management-board

Flexible Working

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many officials in his Department make use of compressed hours arrangements as part of the Civil Service's flexible working hours scheme (a) above and (b) below director level.

Brandon Lewis: This information is not centrally held and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Housing: Construction

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2013, Official Report, column 345W, on housing construction, what his most recent estimate is of the number of units with planning permission; and how many of those (a) have started on site and (b) are yet to start on site.

Nicholas Boles: holding answer 9 December 2013
	According to the latest figures from Glenigan, as at 2 December 2013, there were an estimated 523,700 units with planning permission. Of these:
	267,500 (51%) had started on site,
	184,400 were progressing towards a start,
	57,100 were classed as on hold or shelved, and
	the remainder had either been sold, were due to be sold or else the information was not available.
	This 57,100 figure for stalled/on hold sites is a fall from the 59,100 figure that I gave in my earlier answer (for October 2013), and illustrates how the measures we are taking to help kick-start and unlock stalled sites are working.
	These figures also further demolish the myth propagated by Her Majesty's Opposition that there are 400,000 homes with planning permission not being built because of ‘land banking’.

Local Government Finance

Andy Sawford: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what meetings Ministers in his Department have had with Ministers from other Departments to discuss community budgets in the last 12 months.

Brandon Lewis: Ministers within the Department for Communities and Local Government regularly meet colleagues from other Departments to discuss a range of matters.

Ministers' Private Offices

Bernard Jenkin: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether he (a) has appointed or (b) intends to appoint an enlarged ministerial office.

Brandon Lewis: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer given by the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, my right hon. Friend the Member for Horsham (Mr Maude), on 28 November 2013, Official Report, column 398W.

Non-domestic Rates

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will extend small business rate relief beyond 31 March 2014.

Brandon Lewis: Yes. I refer the hon. Member to the Chancellor's autumn statement on 5 December 2013, Official Report, columns 1110-1112.

Non-domestic Rates: Appeals

Hilary Benn: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many appeals for the reduction of rates have been (a) made and (b) successful in each of the last five years.

Brandon Lewis: holding answer 12 November 2013
	To assist public scrutiny in how the rating appeals system operates over a revaluation cycle, I have published as follows figures for the last 10 financial years for England and Wales. It shows that the number of formal challenges received in the last three years is broadly similar to the profile at the same point over the last revaluation cycle.
	
		
			 Formal challenges received 
			 Local rating list 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 1995 440 440 150 50 40 10 - - - - 
			 2000 148,720 135,270 43,640 2,390 80 40 20 - - - 
			 2005 n/a n/a 273,440 134,550 104,490 133,490 233,770 51,100 5,240 180 
			 2010 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 233,170 171,480 115,380 
		
	
	
		
			 Decisions on formal challenges that resulted in a change 
			 Local rating list 2003-04 2004-05 2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 1995 13,990 2,490 410 70 70 60 10 10 - 10 
			 2000 81,780 79,120 59,720 6,200 950 390 330 150 60 20 
			 2005 n/a n/a 12,570 75,300 63,730 44,010 55,400 51,900 12,950 27,830 
			 2010 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a 4,280 37,800 50,000 
			 Notes: 1. The indicative data for the 1995 and 2000 rating lists was compiled in a different way (from internal management information reports), so are not precisely comparable with 2005 and 2010 lists, however, the figures illustrate the broad trends over the revaluation cycle. Procedural processes have also changed over time. 2. Decisions on formal challenges will include formal challenges received in a previous financial year. 
		
	
	Further to my answer to the right hon. Member of 28 November 2013, Official Report, columns 387-88W, I would observe:
	These figures are for appeals against revaluations that were carried out under the last Administration.
	Three quarters of all appeals to the 2010 list which have been decided to date have resulted in no change to the rateable value.
	The postponement of the 2015 rates revaluation has allowed the Valuation Office Agency to allocate more resources to clearing appeals.
	Latest figures now show that almost 300,000 appeals were cleared in England in the 18 months to September 2013. The number of outstanding rating appeals has now fallen to 168,000 from a peak of almost 340,000, showing a fall in eight successive quarters.
	Notwithstanding the extra resources being allocated to tackle the backlog thanks to the postponement of the 2015 revaluation, this Government wants to increase transparency in the valuation system, including improve the system for challenging rateable values. We will publish proposals in due course.
	The original answer has been reprinted with correction in the Daily Part for 11 December 2013.
	[Official Report, 11 December 2013, Vol. 572, c. 233-4W]
	The original answer has been reprinted with correction in the Daily Part for 11 December 2013.
	[Official Report, 11 December 2013, Vol. 572, c. 233-4W]

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women.

Brandon Lewis: The proportion of men and women recruited to my Department since 5 May 2010 is 48% and 52% respectively.

Staff

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of employees in his Department are (a) female and (b) male, by each Civil Service pay grade.

Brandon Lewis: At 31 October 2013, the proportion of female and male employees in the Department for Communities and Local Government by each civil service pay grade is:
	
		
			 Percentage 
			 Civil service pay grade Female Male 
			 Senior civil service (including Permanent Secretary) 41.8 58.2 
			 PB7 33.3 66.7 
			 PB6 51.4 48.6 
			 PB5 48.0 52.0 
			 PB4 56.0 44.0 
			 PB3 55.2 44.8 
			 PB2 49.4 50.6 
			 Total 51.0 49.0

HEALTH

Abortion

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions have been certified on mental health grounds since the Chief Medical Officer issued her circular of 23 February 2012.

Daniel Poulter: Between 23 February 2012 and 31 December 2012 (the latest date for which figures are available), there were 153,335 abortions performed where the grounds involved a risk to the woman's mental health.

Anaemia

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of anaemia have been diagnosed since 2010 in (a) total and (b) each parliamentary constituency.

Norman Lamb: A table showing a total count of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis of anaemia in England and each parliamentary constituency, since 2010 has been placed in the Library.

Cancer: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to improve provision of drugs to reduce suffering and prolong the lives of patients with cancer.

Norman Lamb: Since October 2010, the Cancer Drugs Fund has helped over 38,000 patients in England to access the life-extending or life improving cancer drugs their clinicians think they need. On 28 September 2013, the Government announced that a further £400 million will be made available to extend the fund to the end of March 2016.
	The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) provides advice to the national health service on the clinical and cost-effectiveness of drugs and treatments. NHS commissioners are legally required by regulations to fund those treatments recommended by NICE in its technology appraisal guidance. NICE can apply flexibility in the appraisal of end-of-life treatments for terminal illnesses, including cancers affecting small numbers of patients.
	The new pricing arrangements for NHS branded medicines, detailed in the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme, will also help to ensure that patients will continue to benefit from new discoveries and better medicines.

Childbirth

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many births per full-time equivalent NHS midwife there were in (a) England and (b) each region in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for St Ives (Andrew George) on 22 October 2013, Official Report, column 76W.

Cholesterol

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health with reference to the Quality and Outcomes Framework Indicator CHD003, scheduled for retirement from April 2014, whether the indicator will be retired permanently; and what other measures will be put in place to monitor GPs' management of cholesterol in patients with existing coronary heart disease after April 2014.

Daniel Poulter: Following negotiations on the General Medical Services contract, changes have been announced to simplify the Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) from April 2014. These changes are intended to remove unnecessarily prescriptive requirements for clinical practice and to give general practitioners (GPs) greater flexibility in adapting care to reflect the needs of individual patients, particularly older people and people more complex health and care needs.
	NHS England will use clinical data from GP practices to ensure continued transparency about quality and outcomes in relation to the areas in which indicators are retired. These data will enable NHS England's commissioning teams, clinical commissioning groups and the Care Quality Commission to reach more rounded judgements about the quality of care provided by general practice, and will support transparency for patients and the public. They will also help evaluate the impact of retiring these indicators and help inform future decisions about the development of the QOF.

Clinical Trials

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps his Department is taking to ensure that all clinical trials data is made publicly available.

Daniel Poulter: The Government is committed to transparency in the area of clinical trials and will continue to work with partners in the United Kingdom and in the European Union to ensure greater transparency in the dissemination of clinical trials information.
	Steps being taken by the Government and its arm's length bodies to address this matter are set out in the Government's recent response to the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee inquiry into clinical trials.

Congenital Abnormalities

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to support people with spina bifida and hydrocephalus in (a) Peterborough and (b) England; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Lamb: NHS England is responsible for supporting people with spina bifida and hydrocephalus.
	Through the Mandate, we have asked NHS England to make measurable progress towards making our health service among the best in Europe at supporting people with ongoing health problems such as spina bifida and hydrocephalus to live healthily and independently, with much better control over the care they receive.
	Domain 2 of the NHS Outcomes Framework and Clinical Commissioning Group Outcomes Indicator Set ‘Enhancing the quality of life for people with long term conditions’ contains a range of improvement areas relevant to people with long term conditions.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women;
	(2)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Daniel Poulter: In line with Cabinet Office guidance we do not publish details about individuals' protected characteristics.
	The members of the departmental board are:
	The Secretary of State (Mr Jeremy Hunt)
	The Minister of State (Norman Lamb)
	The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Earl Howe)
	The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Dr Daniel Poulter)
	The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Jane Ellison)
	Una O'Brien CB, Permanent Secretary.
	Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer
	Felicity Harvey CBE, Director General, Public Health
	Karen Wheeler CBE, Director General, Information and Group Operations
	on Rouse, Director General, Social Care, Local Government and Care Partnerships
	Richard Douglas CB, Director General, Finance and NHS
	Charlie Massey, Director General, Strategy and External Relations
	Dr Catherine Bell (non-executive)
	Peter Sands (lead non-executive)
	Chris Pilling (non-executive)
	Mike Wheeler, Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee (non-executive)
	The members of the executive board are:
	Una O'Brien CB, Permanent Secretary
	Professor Dame Sally Davies, Chief Medical Officer
	Felicity Harvey CBE, Director General, Public Health
	Karen Wheeler CBE, Director General, Information and Group Operations
	Jon Rouse, Director General, Social Care, Local Government and Care Partnerships
	Richard Douglas CB, Director General, Finance and NHS
	Charlie Massey, Director General, Strategy and External Relations
	Dr Catherine Bell (non-executive)

Heart Diseases

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many less invasive ventricular enhancement cardiac operations have taken place in NHS hospitals.

Norman Lamb: Information on how many less invasive ventricular enhancement cardiac operations have taken place in national health service hospitals is not collected centrally.

Home Care Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  which Minister in his Department is responsible for ensuring access to home treatment for patients; and what steps NHS England is taking to develop and implement cost savings in this area;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the potential benefit to the NHS of minimising the use of hospital beds for patients receiving intravenous antibiotics that could be delivered at home;
	(3)  what steps his Department is taking to increase the use of home therapies and prevent hospital beds being used for delivery of intravenous antibiotics.

Norman Lamb: Responsibility for ensuring access to home treatment lies with NHS England.
	NHS England supports the use of safe and effective care in the home setting which provides a positive patient experience.
	The commissioning of home therapies is encouraged where quality is maintained or improved.
	Such services are commissioned by clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) that understand the local context, which is critical to ensure that high quality care is maintained.
	NHS England is working with Monitor and other statutory bodies to support commissioners by creating the appropriate national levers and incentives, such as guidance on tariff flexibilities, to enable better value commissioning by CCGs. The Department has also championed the integrated pioneers programme to support innovation and care that creates collaborative and co-ordinated care around the personal goals and needs of individual patients.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Daniel Poulter: The Department takes action to restrict access to certain categories of websites such as pornography, gambling etc. using industry standard tools.
	Information on individual websites or domains that are blocked is not made available as this may aid those with malicious intent.

NHS: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the reasons are for the time taken by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence to publish guidelines on drug treatments for rare conditions.

Norman Lamb: In the great majority of cases; the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) publishes draft or final technology appraisal guidance on significant new drugs within a few months of their launch. National health service commissioners are legally required by regulations to fund those treatments recommended by NICE in its technology appraisal guidance.
	From 1 April 2013, NICE assumed responsibility for the evaluation of highly specialised technologies for people with very rare conditions as part of its new Highly Specialised Technologies Programme. NICE'S interim process and methods guide for this programme states that draft recommendations are anticipated to be issued within approximately three to four months of confirmation from the European Commission that a marketing authorisation has been granted.
	Where a product is referred to NICE for assessment after it has been launched in the United Kingdom then the time elapsed between launch and publication of NICE guidance will inevitably be longer.
	NHS commissioners will also be legally obliged to fund drugs NICE recommends through this programme.

NHS: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will ring-fence funding for drug treatments for rare diseases.

Norman Lamb: The Department has no plans to ring-fence funding for drug treatments for rare diseases. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has responsibility for the evaluation of selected high cost, low volume drugs under its Highly Specialised Technologies Programme. National health service commissioners are legally obliged to provide funding for drugs that have been recommended in NICE technology appraisals or highly specialised technologies evaluations.

NHS: Drugs

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for which types of treatment NHS funding has been ring-fenced in each of the last three years.

Daniel Poulter: Since local clinicians are best placed to determine which services are required by their local population, funding for specific national health service treatments is not ring-fenced. It is for commissioners of NHS services including clinical commissioning groups and NHS England to decide how best to use the funding allocated to them to commission services, underpinned by clinical knowledge of local healthcare needs.
	From 2013-14, some of the funding allocated to NHS England is ring-fenced for spending on public health functions such as screening and immunisation through an agreement made under section 7A of the NHS Act 2006. This amount totals £1,843 million in 2013-14.
	Also from 2013-14, a ring-fenced public health grant has been paid to local authorities in respect of their public health responsibilities. This amount was £2,662 million in 2013-14.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Daniel Poulter: The gross median pay for civil servants by grade, and declared ethnicity, in the Department itself, can be found in the following table:
	
		
			 Department of Health median gross salary by grade and ethnicity 
			 £ 
			 Grade White Black, Asian and other Minority Ethnic Groups 
			 Administrative Officer 20,567 21,460 
			 Executive Officer 26,341 26,544 
			 Higher Executive Officer 30,894 31,877 
			 Senior Executive Officer 38,299 38,711 
			 Grade 7 49,279 49,279 
			 Grade 6 64,134 61,421 
			 Senior Civil Servant 75,876 69,321 
			 Source: DH Business Management and Payroll System 30 September 2013-12-10 
		
	
	The Department's two executive agencies, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Public Health England (PHE) have provided information on median salary by grade and ethnicity in the following tables:
	
		
			 MHRA median gross salary by grade and ethnicity 
			  Median gross salary by ethnicity 
			 Grade White British (£) Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups (£) 
			 Administrative Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 21,170.00 21,169.00 
			 Administrative Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 21,460.00 21,460.00 
			 Administrative Officer Inner London Pay Range —(New Term) 20,959.00 21,169.00 
			 Administrative Officer National Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 17,795.00 No Staff 
			 Administrative Officer Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 14,103.96 No Staff 
			 AfC Band 3 19,268.00 No Staff 
			 AfC Band 4 22,016.00 21,326.50 
			 AfC Band 5 27,901.00 27,901.00 
			 AfC Band 6 31,768.00 29,759.00 
			 AfC Band 7 37,921.00 37,293.50 
			 AfC Band 8A 47,088.00 47,088.00 
			 AfC Band 8B 55,751.00 No Staff 
			 AfC Band 8C 67,805.00 67,805.00 
			 AfC Band 8D 81,618.00 81,618.00 
			 AfC Band 9 98,453.00 No Staff 
			 Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 25,188.00 25,188.00 
			 Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 25,506.87 25,744.30 
			 Grade 6 Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 61,205.26 61,205.00 
			 Grade 6 Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 63,635.33 64,233.75 
			 Grade 6 National Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 58,205.00 No Staff 
			 Grade 6 National Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 64,758.00 62,175.93 
			 Grade 6 Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 47,114.41 No Staff 
			 Grade 7 Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff 49,279.00 49,279.21 
			 Grade 7 Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 49,611.72 49,279.41 
			 Grade 7 National Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 49,240.00 No Staff 
		
	
	
		
			 Grade 7 National Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 49,595.79 No Staff 
			 Grade 7 Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 48,529.10 No Staff 
			 Grade 7 Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 49,762.51 No Staff 
			 Grade 7 Inner London Pay Range—(New Term) 48,799.00 48,799.00 
			 Higher Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 30,292.00 30,292.00 
			 Higher Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 30,483.78 31,580.75 
			 Higher Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—(New Term) 30,000.00 No Staff 
			 Higher Executive Officer Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 28,542.00 No Staff 
			 NIBSC Band A 68,254.29 No Staff 
			 NIBSC Band C 49,001.16 49,001,16 
			 NIBSC Band D 41,649.37 No Staff 
			 NIBSC Band E 35,843.47 32,183.65 
			 NIBSC Band F 28,760.26 29,952.56 
			 NIBSC Band G 23,328.48 No Staff 
			 NIBSC Band H 22,341.20 No Staff 
			 SCSI 77,639.74 75,124.03 
			 SCS2 120,724.78 No Staff 
			 SCS3 150,000.00 No Staff 
			 Senior Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 37,555.00 37,555.00 
			 Senior Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 38,464.07 38,173.71 
			 Senior Executive Officer Inner London Pay Range—(New Term) 37,175.00 37,175.00 
			 Senior Executive Officer National Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff) 35,865.00 34,055.00 
			 Senior Executive Officer National Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 34,763.45 42,269.00 
			 Senior Executive Officer Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (New Staff 35,865.00 36,675.00 
			 Senior Executive Officer Outer London Pay Range—August 2012 (Existing Staff) 41,503.29 No Staff 
			 Note: ‘No Staff’ indicates that there are no staff in this category. 
		
	
	
		
			 PHE median gross salary by grade and ethnicity 
			 Grade White British (£) Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups (£) 
			 AfC 2 17,425 17,118 
			 AfC 3 18,838 19,053 
			 AfC 4 21,388 21,265 
			 AfC 5 25,783 24,799 
			 AfC 6 30,764 29,759 
			 AfC 7 37,921 37,293 
			 AfC 8a 47,088 45,707 
			 AfC 8b 56,504 55,751 
			 AfC 8c 67,805 67,805 
			 AfC 8d 81,618 81,618 
			 AfC 9 98,453 87,781 
			 AA 16,271 16,110 
			 AO 18,652 20,959 
			 EO 23,188 24,938 
			 HEO 29,992 29,992 
			 SEO 37,175 37,175 
			 Grade 7 48,799 48,799 
			 Grade 6 61,799 64,375 
		
	
	
		
			 SCS/VSM 73,802 94,000 
			 Medical 95,860 84,667 
			 Other 24,316 19,543 
			 Notes: 1. Data given are as at 31 October 2013. 2. ‘Other’ grades include default and ad hoc grades: staff on grades that are not set up on PHE's electronic staff records, (i.e. not AfC or civil service, some of these are staff that transferred in from universities, whose pay scales are different or are National Radiation Protection Board staff based at CRCE Chilton still on old terms and conditions. 3. Only ‘White-British’ is used. i.e. no ‘White-English’ ‘White-Welsh’ etc. 4. Ethnic minority categories are defined as per 2011 Census. 5. AfC are agenda for change and civil service pay bands. 6. Information on ethnic origin is only held for 82% of staff. 7. HEO and SEO grade median salary has fallen on group of new starters on minimum of Inner London scale. 8. AfC 8C median salary is the max spine point of the scale where the median point falls.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Daniel Poulter: The information requested is published by the Office for National Statistics as part of the Civil Service Statistics 2013 Statistical Bulletins in Table 32. The relevant departmental data have been extracted in the following table. The full tables can be found on the ONS website at the following web address:
	www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-319802
	
		
			  Median earnings by salary 
			 Grade Men Women % difference 
			 Senior Civil Servants 80,930 76,590 5.4 
			 Grade 6 and Grade7 55,140 54,190 17 
			 Senior Executive Officer and Higher Executive Officer 35,340 34,500 2.4 
			 Executive Officer 25,330 27,220 -7.5 
			 Administrative Officers and Administrative Assistants 20,960 21,130 -0.8 
			 Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10, and cells containing between one and five employees are represented by "..". ‘Not Applicable’ values are represented by “—”. 2. Salaries in this table represent the full-time equivalent earnings of employees rounded to the nearest 10. 3. With the exception of the Senior Civil Service, Government Departments have delegated pay and grading. For statistical purposes departments are asked to map their grades to a common framework by responsibility level. 4. This table shows staff in their substantive responsibility level unless on temporary promotion in which case staff are recorded at the higher responsibility level. Source: Extracted from Table 32 Civil Service Statistics 2013, Statistical Bulletin published by Office of National Statistics.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Daniel Poulter: A search of the Department's parliamentary questions database shows that the word ‘poverty’ appears in five written answers in the 2010-12 Session and two answers in the 2012-13 Session.
	This information is publicly available on the Parliament website.

Pregnancy: Mental Illness

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  which NHS trusts and foundation trusts fund a specialist psychiatrist post to provide support for women experiencing perinatal mental illness;
	(2)  which maternity units in (a) Yorkshire and (b) England do not currently fund or employ a dedicated mental health midwife;
	(3)  which NHS trusts and foundation trusts fund a specialist midwife post to provide support and make appropriate referrals for women experiencing perinatal mental illness;
	(4)  which NHS trusts and foundation trusts have a mental health strategy covering the issues faced by women in the perinatal period.

Daniel Poulter: The information requested is not held centrally.

Primary Care Trusts: Greater London

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the actual and percentage changes in funding for each London primary care trust were in each year since 2005.

Daniel Poulter: The information requested is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			 Growth in recurrent allocations 
			  £000 
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Barking and Dagenham Primary Care Trust (PCT) 21,414 29,192 26,335 14,585 15,270 15,519 6,417 9,494 
			 Barnet PCT 29,963 32,061 34,710 25,160 26,255 27,186 10,639 16,556 
			 Bexley Care Trust 18,574 20,251 23,243 15,398 16,005 16,546 7,433 10,140 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 31,137 30,432 33,236 24,078 24,904 25,787 10,141 15,781 
			 Bromley PCT 26,194 28,121 30,444 22,046 23,153 23,974 9,396 14,622 
			 Camden PCT 27,942 27,523 30,064 21,785 22,543 23,343 9,242 14,382 
			 City and Hackney Teaching PCT 30,966 32,922 35,765 22,759 23,448 24,280 9,661 15,056 
			 Croydon PCT 31,408 31,966 34,605 25,051 26,156 27,084 12,028 16,405 
			 Ealing PCT 31,862 33,496 36,258 26,281 27,101 28,062 11,066 17,220 
		
	
	
		
			 Enfield PCT 25,877 28,397 32,676 20,984 21,685 22,455 10,135 13,827 
			 Greenwich Teaching PCT 25,333 26,786 27,747 20,339 21,062 21,809 8,600 13,383 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 20,299 20,549 21,240 15,642 16,210 16,785 6,618 10,298 
			 Haringey Teaching PCT 26,095 27,135 28,866 20,494 21,070 21,817 8,673 13,438 
			 Harrow PCT 17,705 19,055 20,809 15,085 15,561 16,113 6,343 9,871 
			 Havering PCT 22,762 24,609 28,011 18,081 19,409 19,869 8,677 11,838 
			 Hillingdon PCT 21,759 23,212 25,128 18,198 18,844 19,513 7,671 11,937 
			 Hounslow PCT 21,554 22,473 24,325 17,622 18,023 18,662 7,336 11,416 
			 Islington PCT 26,193 25,861 26,985 19,878 20,464 21,190 8,321 12,949 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 21,171 20,715 22,437 16,256 16,755 17,349 6,849 10,658 
			 Kingston PCT 14,216 15,250 16,511 11,975 12,387 12,826 5,049 7,857 
			 Lambeth PCT 34,455 35,840 37,437 27,588 28,801 29,823 11,735 18,262 
			 Lewisham PCT 29,962 30,500 31,848 23,467 24,080 24,934 9,796 15,244 
			 Newham PCT 37,518 35,882 38,867 24,800 25,343 26,526 10,347 16,101 
			 Redbridge PCT 21,188 22,062 24,994 17,342 19,055 20,103 8,531 11,639 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCT 16,013 16,873 18,268 13,261 13,280 13,751 5,312 8,266 
			 Southwark PCT 30,613 30,903 32,178 23,690 24,468 25,336 11,283 15,393 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 32,370 34,629 37,488 27,158 28,958 29,986 10,907 16,978 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 34,641 31,137 35,447 21,603 22,225 23,014 9,128 14,183 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 23,842 24,197 26,529 18,971 19,641 20,336 7,971 12,404 
			 Wandsworth PCT 29,153 29,202 31,612 22,942 24,280 25,141 10,404 16,191 
			 Westminster PCT 27,299 27,581 29,873 21,679 22,235 23,024 9,035 14,060 
		
	
	
		
			  Percentage 
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Barking and Dagenham Primary Care Trust (PCT) 12.4 13.8 10.9 5.5 5.3 5.2 2.1 3.0 
			 Barnet PCT 9.0 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Bexley Care Trust 9.3 8.5 9.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.2 3.0 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 9.7 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Bromley PCT 9.1 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Camden PCT 9.6 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 City and Hackney Teaching PCT 10.5 9.5 9.4 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Croydon PCT 9.7 8.2 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.2 3.0 
			 Ealing PCT 9.1 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Enfield PCT 9.7 8.8 9.3 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.2 3.0 
			 Greenwich Teaching PCT 9.6 8.4 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 9.6 8.4 8.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Haringey Teaching PCT 9.7 8.5 8.3 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Harrow PCT 9.1 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Havering PCT 9.7 8.8 9.2 5.5 5.4 5.3 2.2 3.0 
			 Hillingdon PCT 9.1 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Hounslow PCT 9.1 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Islington PCT 9.6 8.3 8.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 9.5 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Kingston PCT 9.1 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Lambeth PCT 9.6 8.3 8.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Lewisham PCT 9.6 8.3 8.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Newham PCT 12.2 9.5 9.4 5.5 5.2 5.2 2.0 3.0 
			 Redbridge PCT 9.3 8.2 8.5 5.5 5.5 5.5 2.2 3.0 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCT 9.1 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Southwark PCT 9.9 8.3 8.0 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.2 3.0 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 9.1 8.1 8.2 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 12.9 9.5 9.8 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 9.6 8.2 8.3 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Wandsworth PCT 9.6 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Westminster PCT 9.4 8.1 8.1 5.5 5.2 5.1 2.0 3.0 
			 Notes: 1. Allocations for 2003-04 to 2005-06 were announced in December 2002 for the planned 32 PCTs in London. The table shows figures for the 31 PCTs in London from 2003. 2. Growth in allocation is over the opening baselines. Opening baselines for some years differ from the previous year’s allocation due to central budgets devolved to PCTs and the transfer of responsibilities for social care for people with learning disabilities from PCTs to local authorities in 2011-12. 
		
	
	
		
			 PCT Recurrent allocations 
			 £000 
			  2005-06 2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 
			 Barking and Dagenham PCT 194,169 240,688 267,023 281,607 301,080 316,599 495,248 328,469 
			 Barnet PCT 361,133 425,930 460,640 485,800 528,745 555,931 889,878 572,790 
			 Bexley Care Trust 217,632 258,661 281,904 297,301 321,350 337,896 538,982 350,820 
			 Brent Teaching PCT 350,993 407,601 440,836 464,915 501,538 527,325 852,531 545,986 
			 Bromley PCT 315,280 373,188 403,632 425,678 466,265 490,239 781,545 505,883 
			 Camden PCT 318,747 368,783 398,848 420,633 453,989 477,331 772,735 497,562 
			 City and Hackney Teaching PCT 326,068 380,906 416,671 439,429 472,222 496,502 798,291 520,886 
			 Croydon PCT 355,404 424,028 458,633 483,683 526,752 553,836 882,156 567,560 
			 Ealing PCT 383,489 444,899 481,157 507,438 545,775 573,837 929,264 595,755 
			 Enfield PCT 291,976 351,514 384,190 405,175 436,718 459,173 728,693 478,376 
			 Greenwich Teaching PCT 287,940 344,632 372,379 392,719 424,160 445,968 712,099 463,001 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham PCT 232,053 265,137 286,377 302,019 326,448 343,232 558,501 356,278 
			 Haringey Teaching PCT 294,350 346,339 375,205 395,698 424,321 446,139 718,671 464,922 
			 Harrow PCT 213,109 255,367 276,176 291,261 313,370 329,483 526,480 341,511 
			 Havering PCT 257,728 303,017 331,028 349,109 376,447 396,316 634,175 409,562 
			 Hillingdon PCT 261,958 308,041 333,169 351,367 379,496 399,009 641,454 412,975 
			 Hounslow PCT 258,422 298,309 322,634 340,256 362,964 381,627 621,386 394,943 
			 Islington PCT 298,986 336,943 363,928 383,806 412,126 433,316 711,112 447,987 
			 Kensington and Chelsea PCT 243,036 275,175 297,613 313,868 337,424 354,773 580,460 368,726 
			 Kingston PCT 170,396 202,727 219,238 231,213 249,459 262,286 419,855 271,826 
			 Lambeth PCT 391,975 467,660 505,097 532,686 580,017 609,840 971,993 631,798 
			 Lewisham PCT 341,224 397,785 429,633 453,100 484,939 509,873 826,163 527,394 
			 Newham PCT 343,886 415,179 454,046 478,846 510,371 536,897 854,258 557,045 
			 Redbridge PCT 248,587 292,512 317,506 334,848 365,515 385,618 614,102 402,666 
			 Richmond and Twickenham PCT 192,786 224,520 242,789 256,050 267,442 281,193 460,227 285,986 
			 Southwark PCT 341,085 401,542 433,721 457,410 492,748 518,084 833,833 532,549 
			 Sutton and Merton PCT 387,426 459,723 497,211 524,369 583,188 613,174 970,614 587,386 
			 Tower Hamlets PCT 303,641 360,074 395,521 417,125 447,591 470,605 751,232 490,676 
			 Waltham Forest PCT 272,407 320,806 347,335 366,306 395,510 415,846 667,917 429,139 
			 Wandsworth PCT 332,216 388,415 420,027 442,968 488,965 514,106 821,181 560,152 
			 Westminster PCT 316,790 367,029 396,902 418,581 447,789 470,813 764,579 486,421

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women.

Daniel Poulter: Since 5 May 2010 the Department has recruited 352 civil servants of whom 40% were men and 60% were women.

Rickets

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of rickets have been diagnosed since 2010 in (a) total and (b) each parliamentary constituency.

Norman Lamb: The following table shows a total count of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis of rickets in England since 2010. This is not a count of patients as the same patient may be admitted more than once in a financial year. It is not possible to identify the total number of rickets cases diagnosed as some diagnoses may have occurred in a primary care setting. As a result the figures are for diagnoses resulting in a hospital admission.
	For patient confidentiality reasons it is not possible to provide these data by constituency.
	
		
			 Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			  Total 
			 2010-11 66 
			 2011-12 74 
			 2012-13 65 
			 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

School Milk

Robert Buckland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions he has had with (a) farmers, (b) dairies and (c) childcare settings about the supply chain for providing children with milk through the Nursery Milk Scheme.

Daniel Poulter: As part of the consultation process we engaged with a wide range of stakeholders including parents, childcare providers and milk producers. We also engaged specifically with representatives of the dairy industry and local government to seek their views on how they might be affected by the options proposed in the consultation.
	A decision on the future operation of the nursery milk scheme will be taken after full consideration is given to the final impact assessment, the consultation responses and other relevant information.

Scurvy

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of scurvy have been diagnosed since 2010 in (a) total and (b) each parliamentary constituency.

Norman Lamb: The following table shows a total count of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis of scurvy in England since 2010. This is not a count of patients as the same patient may be admitted more than once in a financial year. It is not possible to identify the total number of scurvy cases diagnosed as some diagnoses may have occurred in a primary care setting. As a result the figures are for diagnoses resulting in a hospital admission.
	For patient confidentiality reasons it is not possible to provide these data by constituency.
	
		
			 Activity in English NHS Hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			  Finished admission episodes 
			 2010-11 8 
			 2011-12 8 
			 2012-13 18 
			 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre

Speech and Language Disorders

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what NHS services and support are available for people with (a) a stammer and (b) other speech problems.

Daniel Poulter: The level of provision of speech and language services, as for ail health services, is decided by the local clinical commissioning group (CCG) and it will take into account the needs of the population, resources available and evidenced-based best practice.
	The CCG's decisions are underpinned by the joint strategic needs assessment (JSNA) and the local health and wellbeing strategy, with clinical insight and knowledge of local healthcare needs, which are informed by a wide range of local clinicians either directly or via clinical senates or local professional networks, As such, provision of services will vary in response to local needs.
	All national health service speech and language services are provided free of charge on the basis of assessed clinical need.

Tobacco

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what analysis his Department has commissioned into non-tobacco substances found in illicit and counterfeit cigarettes;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of the threat to public health of illicit and counterfeit cigarettes.

Jane Ellison: We received a wide range of responses to the ‘Consultation on Standardised Packaging of Tobacco Products’ on the potential impact on the illicit tobacco trade. The Department has not commissioned an analysis of the components of illicit and counterfeit cigarettes.
	The Government will consider the wider issues raised by standardised tobacco packaging, including the implications for the illicit trade, before making a final decision on this policy.

Tobacco: Packaging

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence from Australia his Department has seen after the first 12 months of the standardised packaging experiment in that country.

Jane Ellison: The Department is aware of new research studies which include information from Australia and which have been cited in parliamentary debates and elsewhere.
	Sir Cyril Chandler, whom we have commissioned to conduct an independent review of the public health impact of standardised packaging, will have access to all this evidence.

Tobacco: Packaging

Priti Patel: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what other government departments were consulted before the announcement of the change in policy on the introduction of standardised packaging for tobacco products.

Jane Ellison: As announced on 28 November, we have commissioned an independent review of the public health evidence on standardised tobacco packaging and will table an amendment to the Children and Families Bill to take enabling powers now, which would allow regulations to be made to introduce standardised tobacco packaging later, if it is decided to proceed with this policy following the review.
	This announcement was subject to the cross-Government clearance process.
	The Government will consider the wider issues raised by standardised tobacco packaging before making a final decision on this policy.

Transplant Surgery: Bone Marrow Disorders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the overall cost of treatment and care for patients who have received a bone marrow transplant in each of the last five years.

Daniel Poulter: The Department has not carried out an assessment on the overall cost in each of the last five years of the treatment and care for patients who have received a bone marrow transplant.
	This is because there is currently no national tariff for bone marrow transplant and so a range of local arrangements and prices are in place to fund this activity. However, going forward, the single operating model for specialised services means that, as well as ensuring there are single specifications setting out the quality of services, NHS England will be working to bring together the way it pays for and records this activity. It will be advised by the Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Reference Group.

Transplant Surgery: Bone Marrow Disorders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to ensure the development and adoption of national guidelines for the delivery of late effects services for patients who have received a bone marrow transplant.

Daniel Poulter: NHS England has signalled the importance of access to late effects services through their inclusion in the service specifications in place to ensure equitable and consistent commissioning of specialised care.
	The Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Reference Group are continuing to review the service specification and any significant changes will be consulted upon further.

Transplant Surgery: Bone Marrow Disorders

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the outcomes were of any recent discussions he has had on whether NHS England should take responsibility for direct commissioning of late effects services for patients recovering from bone marrow transplant.

Daniel Poulter: No recent discussions have taken place between the Secretary of State for Health, my right hon. Friend the Member for South West Surrey (Mr Hunt), and NHS England on whether NHS England should take responsibility for direct commissioning of late effects services for patients recovering from bone marrow transplant.
	NHS England has advised that for bone marrow transplant parts of the pathway of care include services commissioned by others. NHS England is committed to working with all commissioners on a pathway of care for the benefit of patients. It has signalled the importance of access to late effects services through their inclusion in the service specifications in place to ensure equitable and consistent commissioning of specialised care.
	The Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Reference Group, which advises NHS England, is continuing to review the service specifications and any significant changes will be consulted upon.

Tuberculosis

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence of tuberculosis in the UK; and when he intends to publish a strategy for better tackling this disease.

Daniel Poulter: Public Health England (PHE) is leading a national oversight group which brings together partners from the Department, NHS England, local government, National Institute for Care Excellence, British Thoracic Society and TB Alert to develop the PHE strategy to decrease tuberculosis (TB) rates in England over the next 10 years. This aims to bring together best practice in clinical care, social support and public health to strengthen TB control, leading to a year on year decrease in incidence and a reduction in health inequalities associated with TB. The PHE strategy is expected to be published in March 2014.
	In the meantime, there are a number of new or ongoing activities to reduce the incidence of TB in the United Kingdom. These include work to develop collaborative commissioning arrangements for TB in high incidence areas, the increasing adoption of TB cohort review, the funding of a mobile X-ray unit in London, and rolling out pre-entry screening for migrants from high incidence countries.

Vitamins: Deficiency Diseases

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of vitamin deficiency have been diagnosed since 2010 in (a) total and (b) each parliamentary constituency.

Norman Lamb: The following table shows a total count of finished admission episodes with a primary diagnosis of vitamin deficiency in England since 2010. This is not a count of patients as the same patient may be admitted more than once in a financial year. It is not possible to identify the total number of vitamin deficiency cases diagnosed as some diagnoses may have occurred in a primary care setting. As a result the figures are for diagnoses resulting in a hospital admission.
	For patient confidentiality reasons it is not possible to provide this data by constituency.
	
		
			 Activity in English national health service hospitals and English NHS commissioned activity in the independent sector 
			  Total 
			 2010-11 1,523 
			 2011-12 1,633 
			 2012-13 1,806 
			 Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), Health and Social Care Information Centre 
		
	
	The total number of hospital admissions covers the following vitamin deficiencies:
	Vitamin A deficiency with conjunctival xerosis
	Vitamin A deficiency with Bitot's spot and conjunctival xerosis
	Vitamin A deficiency with corneal xerosis
	Vitamin A deficiency with corneal ulceration and xerosis
	Vitamin A deficiency with keratomalacia
	Vitamin A deficiency with night blindness
	Vitamin A deficiency with xerophthalmic scars of cornea
	Other ocular manifestations of vitamin A deficiency
	Other manifestations of vitamin A deficiency
	Vitamin A deficiency, unspecified
	Beriberi
	Thiamine deficiency, unspecified
	Niacin deficiency (pellagra)
	Riboflavin deficiency
	Pyridoxine deficiency
	Deficiency of other specified B group vitamins
	Vitamin B deficiency, unspecified
	Ascorbic acid deficiency
	Rickets, active
	Vitamin D deficiency, unspecified
	Deficiency of vitamin E
	Deficiency of vitamin K
	Deficiency of other vitamins
	Vitamin deficiency, unspecified

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Office; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Nick Hurd: The Deputy Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.
	The Cabinet Office takes measures to prevent staff from accessing certain categories of websites and domains.
	Types of websites and domains to which access is prohibited include: gambling, adult content, games, phishing, hacking and malicious sources. We have no plan to publish a list of such websites.

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Security

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport from which countries passengers flying into the UK are permitted to carry more than 100ml of liquid through security in their hand luggage.

Robert Goodwill: Liquids over 100ml may be carried in hand luggage through UK passenger screening points if:
	the items have been purchased airside at an EU airport; or
	if the items have been purchased on an EU registered airline; or
	the items have been purchased at an airport in a third country which has been verified by the European Commission as having appropriate security arrangements in place—currently all international airports in Canada and the USA, Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia and Changi airport in Singapore.
	The liquids and the receipt must be presented inside the sealed security bag provided at the time of purchase.
	From 31 January 2014 passengers will be permitted to carry duty free liquids over 100ml in sealed security bags from any airport or airline in the world.
	The items will be screened using dedicated liquid explosive detection systems.

Cycling: Accidents

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many cyclists were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured whilst wearing headphones in each of the last three years.

Robert Goodwill: The information requested is not held centrally.

Cycling: Accidents

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many cyclists were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured whilst not wearing a helmet in each of the last three years.

Robert Goodwill: The Department recently started to collect information on whether reported pedal cyclist casualties were wearing a helmet at the time of accident. In 2012, the Department only received this information for 8% of killed or seriously injured (KSI) pedal cyclists. The remaining 92% of cases were unknown.
	Of the 8% of KSI casualties where this information is available, 52% were not wearing a helmet.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Stephen Hammond: The gender split of executive board members is four men and two women. For non-executive board members it is five men and two women.
	In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government's lead non-exec, Lord Browne, noted that whereas
	“FTSE100 companies only have 12.5 per cent of board members who are women, more than 36 per cent of government non-executives are women.”
	The Department is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public which we serve at all levels.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not monitor the composition of boards separately from its general monitoring of the representation of different ethnic groups, and so while executive board members are captured in wider departmental monitoring, non-executive members are not. Racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring of executive board members without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.
	In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government's lead non-exec, Lord Browne, accepted that
	“the numbers of non-executives with minority ethnic backgrounds remains disappointingly low”
	but reiterated his commitment to improving their representation on departmental boards. This is a commitment I share.
	The Department is committed to ensuring that it reflects the diversity of the public which we serve at all levels.

Eurostar

Frank Dobson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what payments were made to HM Treasury by Eurostar in each of the last 10 years;
	(2)  what information his Department holds on the proportion of Eurostar's income that was re-invested in the business in each of the last 10 years;
	(3)  what funding from the public purse Eurostar has received in each of the last 10 years;
	(4)  what level of profits have been made by Eurostar in each of the last 10 years;
	(5)  whether the sale of the Government's share in Eurostar will require the consent of Parliament.

Stephen Hammond: The Department does not hold this information before 2010. Relevant figures before 2010 cannot be obtained without disproportionate cost. The relevant figures between 2010 and 2012 are as follows.
	The payments received in the last 10 years are dividends of £2.5 million in 2012 and £6.4 million in 2013.
	Since September 2010, the Department for Transport owns 100% shareholding in LCR, and LCR owns a 40% stake in Eurostar International Limited (EUKL). The proportion of Eurostar's income which was re-invested in the business during 2010-12 is as follows:
	
		
			 Year ended 31 December Profit (£ million) Retained (£ million) 
			 2012 91 84.4 
			 2011 20.8 20.8 
			 2010 189.4 189.4 
			 Note: For the purposes of this question, we have defined income as profit after tax, and re-invested as change in retained earnings excluding transactions with owners, recorded directly in shareholders fund. 
		
	
	Eurostar has received the following contributions from the public purse in the last 10 years:
	
		
			  £ million 
			 2012 0 
			 2011 9.8 
			 2010 57.8 
			 2009 177 
		
	
	Following Eurostar's incorporation in September 2010, SNCF owns 55%, LCR owns 40% and SNCB 5%, according Eurostar's filed accounts, net profit/loss in where:
	January to December 2012: £91 million (net profit);
	Jan to December 2011: £20.8 million (net profit);
	September to December 2010: £189.4 (net profit)—September to December 2010, four months following incorporation.
	Parliamentary consent would not be required.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to his Department's Estimate of Expense of High Speed Rail (London to West Midlands) dated 15 November 2013, if he will update that document to adjust the figures to December 2013 prices.

Robert Goodwill: The Estimate of Expense is presented in 2011 prices. This price base has been used in presenting all cost information on the project to date to enable a clear comparison of cost as the project progresses. I do not therefore intend to update the Estimate of Expense to adjust the figures to December 2013 prices.

Large Goods Vehicles: Safety

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the outcome of his Department's review of exemptions from safety standards in current heavy goods vehicle regulations was.

Robert Goodwill: The review is not finalised and work is ongoing to develop an impact assessment to understand fully the cost and benefits before reaching a decision on changing the current side guard exemptions.
	From 29 October 2014 all new goods vehicles will have to comply with revised European rules, which permit fewer exemptions than the current domestic legislation.

Merchant Shipping (Hours of Work) Regulations 2002

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will review the effect of the Merchant Shipping (Hours of Work) Regulations 2002 on seafarers' employment rights.

Stephen Hammond: The Merchant Shipping (Hours of Work) Regulations 2002 are currently under review as part of the implementation of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006. The Regulations include both employer duties and seafarer entitlements. In implementing the provisions of the Maritime Labour Convention, we propose to take the opportunity to give seafarers access to an employment tribunal (industrial tribunal in Northern Ireland) to enforce their entitlement to paid leave, in line with the position of workers ashore, inland waterways workers and sea-fishermen, and to provide seafarers with the same protection and treatment when exercising their rights under the 2002 Regulations as other workers exercising similar rights.
	The proposed provisions include a prohibition on contracting out of their rights under the Regulations, and an extension of statutory protections under the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 (and their Northern Ireland equivalents) to seafarers.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Stephen Hammond: The median gross pay for staff in the Department for Transport and its executive agencies, in each pay band identified as (a) White British and (b)Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  White (£) BME (£) Not known (£) 
			 AA 15,200 15,309 14,000 
			 AO 18,000 19,953 17,662 
			 EO 24,687 24,687 24,687 
			 HEO 30,242 32,569 32,028 
			 SEO 39,100 41,163 39,600 
		
	
	
		
			 Grade 7 50,870 50,870 50,670 
			 Grade 6 63,069 62,927 63,470 
			 SCS 78,649 96,444 84,000

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Stephen Hammond: The median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women in each pay band in the Department for Transport and its executive agencies is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Female (£) Male (£) 
			 AA 14,000 15,200 
			 AO 18,000 19,889 
			 EO 23,320 24,687 
			 HEO 29,724 31,070 
			 SEO 38,400 40,281 
			 Grade 7 50,423 50,870 
			 Grade 6 63,174 63,069 
			 SCS 73,000 82,130

Piracy: Somalia

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make an assessment of the implications for his Department's policies of the findings of the Danish Maritime Accident Investigation Board inquiry into the pirate attack on the Leopold in January 2011.

Stephen Hammond: The Department is aware of the Danish MAIB safety report into the pirate attack on the Danish vessel Leopard in 2011, which was published on 29 October 2013. The Department for Transport (DFT) and Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) officials have been considering the content of the report and whether there are any implications for our policies. However, it is worth noting that the anti-piracy measures that the report refers to are part of industry-led Best Management Practices (BMP) for protection against Somalia based piracy, specifically to assist ships to avoid, deter or delay piracy attacks in the High Risk Area (latter defined in BMP). DFT officials will be referring to the Danish report at this month's meeting of the National Maritime Security Committee, which includes industry representatives, in order to seek views from industry before any formal conclusions or recommendations are made about potential implications or not for DFT policies.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

Stephen Hammond: The response covers:
	Department for Transport central
	Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency
	Highways Agency
	Vehicle Certification Agency
	Maritime and Coastguard Agency
	Vehicle and Operator Services Agency
	Driving Standards Agency
	
		
			 Staff recruited since 5 May 2010 
			 Agency Gender key Total Proportion (percentage) 
			 DFTc Female 346 46.19 
			  Male 403 53.80 
			 DSA Female 63 24.60 
			  Male 193 75.39 
			 DVLA Female 632 52.79 
			  Male 565 47.20 
			 HA Female 192 28.78 
			  Male 475 71.21 
			 VOSA Female 135 38.46 
			  Male 216 61.53 
			 MCA Female 78 30.11 
			  Male 181 69.88 
			 VCA Female 10 28.57 
			  Male 25 71.42 
			 Grand total  3,514  
			     
			 Grand total Female 1,456 41.43 
			 Grand total Male 2,058 58.56

Rescue Services: Belfast

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Belfast was staffed at below risk-assessed levels in November 2013.

Stephen Hammond: Belfast Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed at below risk assessed levels in November 2013 on eight occasions out of 60 shifts.
	These situations are mitigated by ‘MRCC pairing’ where each MRCC is connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support. In respect of Belfast MRCC mutual support is available through a fixed link from Stornoway MRCC and dial up links from the MRCCs at Shetland, Aberdeen, Liverpool or Holyhead.
	Every effort is being made to recruit staff. Recently the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) successfully recruited more Coastguards filling 28 vacancies with a further 31 recruits in the final stages of appointment. A further recruitment campaign was launched on 6 November. With this and now that negotiations with the Trade Union have concluded with 79% of PCS members voting to accept the new terms and conditions, the MCA believes that this will help stabilise the current staffing issues.

Rescue Services: Liverpool

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre in Liverpool was staffed at below risk-assessed levels in November 2013.

Stephen Hammond: Liverpool Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed at below risk assessed levels in November 2013 on 11 occasions out of 60 shifts.
	These situations are mitigated by 'MRCC pairing' where each MRCC is connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support. In respect of Liverpool MRCC mutual support is available through a fixed link from Holyhead MRCC and dial up links from the MRCCs at Milford Haven, Swansea, Belfast or Aberdeen.
	Every effort is being made to recruit staff. Recently the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) successfully recruited more Coastguards filling 28 vacancies with a further 31 recruits in the final stages of appointment. A further recruitment campaign was launched on 6 November. With this and now that negotiations with the Trade Union have concluded with 79% of PCS members voting to accept the new terms and conditions, the MCA believes that this will help stabilise the current staffing issues.

Rescue Services: Stornoway

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many times the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre Stornoway was staffed at below risk-assessed levels in November 2013.

Stephen Hammond: Stornoway Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) was staffed at below risk assessed levels in November 2013 on 14 occasions out of 60 shifts.
	These situations are mitigated by 'MRCC pairing' where each MRCC is connected to at least one other MRCC which is available to provide mutual support. In respect of Stornoway MRCC mutual support is available through a fixed link from Belfast MRCC and dial up links from the MRCCs at Shetland or Humber.
	Every effort is being made to recruit staff. Recently the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) successfully recruited more Coastguards filling 28 vacancies with a further 31 recruits in the final stages of appointment. A further recruitment campaign was launched on 6 November. With this and now that negotiations with the Trade Union have concluded with 79% of PCS members voting to accept the new terms and conditions, the MCA believes that this will help stabilise the current staffing issues.

Roads: Accidents

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people were (a) killed and (b) seriously injured whilst working on the hard shoulder in each of the last three years. [Official Report, 7 January 2014, Vol. 573, c. 3MC.]

Robert Goodwill: The following data has been provided by the Highways Agency who manage and operate the Strategic Road Network in England:
	
		
			  Number 
			 Killed:  
			 2011 0 
			 2012 0 
			 2013 1 
		
	
	
		
			 Seriously Injured:  
			 2011 1 
			 2012 0 
			 2013 1 
		
	
	These figures include both directly employed and contractor employees carrying out work for the Highways Agency and specifically refer to hard shoulder incidents only.

Roads: Accidents

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many accidents involved construction vehicles in London in each of the last three years.

Robert Goodwill: The information request is not available. The Department does not hold “construction” vehicles as a vehicle type category in the reported personal injury road accident database (STATS19).

Shipping

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what stage has been reached on each of the 93 regulations in the maritime theme that were proposed for improvement under the Red Tape Challenge;
	(2)  what his plans are for implementing the results of the maritime theme of the Red Tape Challenge;
	(3)  what stage has been reached on each of the 30 regulations in the maritime theme that were proposed for scrapping under the Red Tape Challenge.

Stephen Hammond: The Government announced the outcome of the maritime theme of the Red Tape Challenge in the Budget Statement on 20 March 2013, which included plans to improve 93 regulations and scrap a further 30. The Department is looking to do as much of this work as possible by 2015.
	Further progress on implementation of the Government's Red Tape Challenge programme in general, will be announced in early 2014.

Shipping

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many meetings (a) he, (b) Ministers and (c) officials in his Department have attended to discuss the (i) ports and (ii) shipping strategic partnership plans; who the attendees of all such meetings to date were; and how many such meetings trades unions were invited to attend.

Stephen Hammond: Officials held discussions on the plans at two workshops, one in February and the other in July of this year. These workshops were attended by a range of interested parties from across Government Departments, and the maritime industry. The RMT and Nautilus unions attended the second of these workshops focussing on shipping. Other workshop planning and follow up meetings took place between officials, Ports Association (UKMPG and BPA) and Chamber of Shipping representatives (who worked in consultation with union representatives).
	The content of these plans reflects ongoing work on a variety of maritime issues which are discussed with the industry in a range of meetings at official and ministerial level, including directly with the unions. It would be at disproportionate cost to provide lists of attendees at all these meetings.
	These plans are not intended to be set pieces. They will evolve as new actions,, tasks and decisions are shaped and agreed. We hope the unions will continue to play an active role in these plans as they further develop.

Shipping

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps his Department is taking to increase recruitment to and training in the maritime industry.

Stephen Hammond: Recruitment and training is in the first instance a matter for the maritime industry itself, but the Government has a strong supportive role, and is keen to see new trainees entering the industry, being trained to the highest standards and reversing the decline in seafarer numbers. The key policies which we have in place in this regard include the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) scheme; the Tonnage Tax, which includes a training requirement; and Maritime Apprenticeships.
	On 9 September 2013, the Secretary of State for Transport announced an additional £3 million of SMarT funding for the remainder of this Parliament, bringing the SMarT budget up to£15 million.

Shipping: Leave

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his policy is on statutory access to (a) paid annual leave and (b) compensatory rest periods for seafarers.

Stephen Hammond: The Department's policy on statutory access to paid annual leave and compensatory rest periods for seafarers is explained in Merchant Shipping Notice MSN 1767(M).

Shipping: Leave

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will bring forward legislative proposals to bring seafarers' entitlement to paid annual leave in line with such entitlements for land-based workers.

Stephen Hammond: The Department has already consulted on proposals to increase seafarers' statutory entitlement to annual leave to 2.5 days per month of employment in line with the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, and in addition to provide an entitlement to 8 days of paid leave in respect of public holidays, in line with workers ashore. The proposals also introduce a right for a seafarer to enforce their paid leave entitlement by complaint to an employment tribunal (in Northern Ireland, an industrial tribunal).
	Those proposals have been extended to provide seafarers with the same protection and treatment when exercising their rights under the 2002 Regulations as shore-based workers, inland waterways workers and sea-fishermen exercising similar rights, both through a prohibition on contracting out of their rights under the Regulations, and through extending statutory protections under the Employment Rights Act 1996 and the Employment Tribunals Act 1996 (and their Northern Ireland equivalents) to seafarers.
	The amending Regulations are expected to be made early in 2014.

Shipping: Leave

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and (b) representatives of the shipping industry on seafarers statutory entitlement to (i) paid annual leave and (ii) compensatory rest periods.

Stephen Hammond: The information requested is as follows:
	(a) Ministers have been kept informed of policy proposals regarding seafarers' statutory entitlement to paid leave and compensatory rest periods.
	(b) Ministers and officials regularly meet with representatives from shipowners' and seafarers' organisations to discuss a wide variety of policy issues. Ministers have been kept informed about the policy on paid annual leave entitlement and compensatory rest periods which was agreed with industry representatives more than 12 months ago, but these issues have not been on the agenda for meetings with Ministers in the last 12 months.

Tonnage Tax

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the number of UK nationals who serve as officers on ships under the tonnage tax scheme.

Stephen Hammond: The number of UK nationals employed as officers on ships in the tonnage scheme, as reported to us by companies and groups who have submitted their training commitments for 2013-14, is 2,468. Training commitments for 2013-14 are still outstanding from three companies, so this figure could change.

CABINET OFFICE

Childbirth: Greater London

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the (a) number and (b) proportion of births where one or both parents were foreign-born was in (i) London and (ii) each Greater London borough in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated December 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what the (a) number and (b) proportion of births was where one-or both parents were foreign-born in (i) London and (ii) each Greater London borough in the most recent year for which figures are available [178839],
	Figures for live births where one or both parents are non-UK born have been compiled from birth registration data. The following table shows the number and proportion of live births in 2012 by area of usual residence. Information on country of birth of parents is provided by the informant at registration.
	The number of live births to non-UK born parents includes sole registered live births (births registered by the mother alone, where information on the father was not recorded) where the mother is non-UK born. Some births sole registered by UK born mothers may have non-UK born fathers but it is not possibly to quantify these as no information is available on the father.
	
		
			 Number and proportion of live births in London, where one or both parents are non-UK born, 2012 
			   Live births where one parent is foreign born Live births where both parents are foreign born 
			 Area of usual residence of mother Number of live births Number Percentage of all live births Number Percentage of all live births 
			 London 134,186 27,722 20.7 60,364 45.0 
			       
			 Inner London 53,957 12,916 23.9 25,060 46.4 
			 Camden 2,944 672 22.8 1,433 48.7 
			 Hackney and City of London 4,585 1,467 32.0 1,711 37.3 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 2,646 639 24.1 1,124 42.5 
			 Haringey 4,209 1,024 24.3 2,031 48.3 
			 Islington 2,988 723 24.2 1,090 36.5 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 2,024 475 23.5 1,156 57.1 
			 Lambeth 4,825 1,197 24.8 1,895 39.3 
			 Lewisham 5,095 1,136 22.3 2,064 40.5 
			 Newham 6,426 1,319 20.5 4,145 64.5 
			 Southwark 5,030 1,193 23.7 2,206 43.9 
			 Tower Hamlets 4,784 1,092 22.8 2,611 54.6 
			 Wandsworth 5,451 1,285 23.6 1,923 35.3 
			 Westminster 2,950 694 23.5 1,671 56.6 
			       
			 Outer London 80,229 14,806 18.5 35,304 44.0 
			 Barking and Dagenham 3,957 653 16.5 1,997 50.5 
			 Barnet 5,585 1,216 21.8 2,457 44.0 
			 Bexley 3,076 396 12.9 666 21.7 
			 Brent 5,340 989 18.5 3,398 63.6 
			 Bromley 4,140 659 15.9 780 18.8 
			 Croydon 5,884 1,173 19.9 2,321 39.4 
			 Ealing 5,847 1,104 18.9 3,397 58.1 
			 Enfield 5,094 1,005 19.7 2,414 47.4 
			 Greenwich 4,624 820 17.7 2,092 45.2 
			 Harrow 3,585 617 17.2 2,110 58.9 
			 Havering 2,888 306 10.6 494 17.1 
			 Hillingdon 4,536 723 15.9 2,072 45.7 
			 Hounslow 4,621 757 16.4 2,558 55.4 
			 Kingston upon Thames 2,328 475 20.4 680 29.2 
			 Merton 3,476 666 19.2 1,643 47.3 
			 Redbridge 4,792 1,071 22.3 2,386 49.8 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2,916 688 23.6 649 22.3 
			 Sutton 2,708 414 15.3 761 28.1 
			 Waltham Forest 4,832 1,074 22.2 2,429 50.3

Civil Servants: Greater London

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  what the gender make-up is of Civil Service staff in London;
	(2)  what the gender make-up is of all Civil Service staff;
	(3)  what the ethnic make-up is of Civil Service staff in London.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Peter Fullerton, dated December 2013
	On behalf of the Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office (1) what the gender make-up is of all Civil Service staff, (2) what the gender make-up is of Civil Service staff in London, and (3) what the ethnic make-up is of Civil Service staff in London (178777, 178789, 178795).
	Estimates of regional Civil Service employment as at 31 March are published annually by the ONS. The two tables provide the requested data for 2013, and are consistent with the data published in Tables 1, 16 and 17 of the Annual Civil Service Statistics 2013 release:
	http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/publications/re-reference-tables.html?edition=tcm%3A77-319802
	
		
			 Table 1: Civil Service employment by gender1,2, 31 March 2013 
			 Headcount 
			  All employees 
			  Male Female Total 
			 All Civil Servants 210,300 238,530 448,840 
			 Civil Servants in London 35,900 38,340 74,240 
			 1 Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2 Workplace postcode data are used to derive geographical information. Source: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey 
		
	
	
		
			 Table 2: Civil Service employment in London by ethnicity1,2,3, 31 March 2013 
			 Headcount 
			  All employees 
			 Government Office Region White Ethnic minority Not Declared Not Reported Total 
			 Civil Servants in London 38,230 18,370 13,470 4,170 74,240 
			 1 Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2 Workplace postcode data are used to derive geographical information. 3 Those employees who have actively chosen not to declare their status are reported as 'Not Declared'. Source: Annual Civil Service Employment Survey

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women;
	(2)  how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups;
	(3)  what proportion of staff recruited to his Department since 5 May 2010 were (a) men and (b) women;
	(4)  what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups;
	(5)  what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Francis Maude: Details about the membership of the Cabinet Office Board are published in the departmental Annual Report and Accounts at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-annual-report-and-accounts-2012-to-2013
	At present 49.9% of my Department are female and 50.1% are male.
	Cabinet Office median gross salaries by grade vary by less than 5% between the genders. The following table sets out more information:
	
		
			 CS Equivalent Grade CO Pay band Male (£) Female (£) 
			 Permanent Secretary Permanent Secretary 161,527 n/a 
			 SCS3 SCS3 133,853 130,368 
			 SCS2 SCS2 92,148 93,477 
			 SCS1 SCS1 68,762 65,644 
			 Grade 6/7 A 52,615 50,527 
			 HEO/SEO B2 31,983 31,983 
			 EO B1 24,077 24,549 
			 AA/AO C 21,007 20,537 
		
	
	On your questions regarding ethnicity, I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 26 November 2013, Official Report, column 270W.

Government Services: Websites

George Galloway: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  if he will bring forward legislative proposals to outlaw unofficial websites receiving payment for services offered by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) when payment can already be made through the DVLA website;
	(2)  if he will bring forward legislative proposals to outlaw unofficial websites receiving payment for services offered by the Land Registry where payment can already be made through the Land Registry website.

Nick Hurd: The Government Digital Service are leading a cross-Government exercise with organisations such as the OFT, the Advertising Standards Agency, search engine providers and various trading standard bodies to curtail the activity of websites that advertise their services in misleading ways, using existing consumer protection legislation.
	At this stage we do not plan to introduce further legislation.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office 
	(1)  whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited;
	(2)  whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in No. 10 Downing Street; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Nick Hurd: The Prime Minister’s Office is an integral part of the Cabinet Office.
	The Cabinet Office takes measures to prevent staff from accessing certain categories of websites and domains.
	Types of websites and domains to which access is prohibited include; gambling, adult content, games phishing, hacking and malicious sources. We have no plan to publish a list of such websites.

Overseas Students

Frank Field: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the nationality was of the 49,000 non-EU students who had been in the UK for at least 12 months for the purposes of study and were identified in the International Passenger Survey as departing the UK in the year ended December 2012.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated December 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the nationality was of the 49,000 non-EU students who had been in the UK for at least 12 months for the purposes of study and who were identified in the International Passenger Survey as departing the UK in the year ended December 2012.
	The Office for National Statistics produces estimates of Long-Term International Migration (LTIM), primarily based on the International Passenger Survey (IPS). The IPS is a continuous voluntary sample survey conducted by the Office for National Statistics.
	Table 1 shows the estimates by nationality for non-EU nationals who emigrated from the UK in the year ending December 2012 and who identified formal study to be their previous main reason for immigration to the UK.
	
		
			 Table 1: Emigration of non-EU nationals with a previous main reason for immigration of formal study, by nationality, year ending December 2012 (Thousand) 
			 Country of nationality Estimate +/- 95% Confidence Interval 
			 China 12 3 
			 India 8 2 
			 Malaysia 3 1 
			 Pakistan 3 1 
			 USA 2 1 
			 Thailand 2 1 
			 Nigeria 2 1 
			 Sri Lanka 1 1 
			 Norway 1 1 
			 Jordan 1 2 
			 Saudi Arabia 1 1 
			 Philippines 1 1 
			 Taiwan (China) 1 1 
			 Hong Kong 1 1 
			 Vietnam 1 1 
			 Malawi 1 1 
			 Japan 1 1 
			 Nepal 1 1 
			 Korea, South/Republic 1 1 
			 Mauritius 1 1 
			 Other 7 2 
			 Total (All Non-EU Nationals) 49 6 
			 1. All estimates are individually rounded to the nearest thousand. Totals may not add exactly due to this rounding. 2. Individual nationalities are presented in descending sequence based on the unrounded emigration estimates. 3. The Other category includes all non-EU nationalities with at least one contact on the IPS but where the estimate by individual nationality rounds to zero. Source: Office for National Statistics—International Passenger Survey. 
		
	
	Confidence intervals (CIs) provide an estimated range within which the true value of a population is likely to fall. The confidence intervals in the table are 95 per cent confidence intervals; this means that this range is expected to contain the true value of the number of migrants around 95 per cent of the time. Caution should be exercised when using an estimate which has a large confidence interval.

Self-employed

Nigel Evans: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the number of self-employed people in (a) Ribble Valley constituency, (b) Lancashire and (c) the UK.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	Letter from Glen Watson, dated December 2013
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics (ONS), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate has been made of the number of self-employed people in (a) Ribble Valley constituency, (b) Lancashire and (c) the UK. (178636)
	The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles employment statistics for local areas from the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation (ILO) definitions.
	The latest APS estimates available for self-employed people are from interviews held during the period July 2012 to June 2013. As with any sample survey, estimates from the APS are subject to a margin of uncertainty. A guide to the quality of the estimates is given in the table.
	The table shows the number of self-employed people in Lancashire and the UK from the APS, however, no reliable statistics can be produced for Ribble Valley constituency due to small sample sizes.
	National and local area estimates for many labour market statistics, including employment, unemployment and claimant count are available on the NOMIS website at:
	http://www.nomisweb.co.uk
	
		
			 Number of people self-employed between July 2012 and June 2013 
			  12 months ending June 20131(Thousand) 
			 United Kingdom *4,183 
			 Lancashire **71 
			 1 Coefficients of Variation have been calculated for the latest period as an indication of the quality of the estimates. See Guide to Quality following. Guide to Quality: The Coefficient of Variation (CV) indicates the quality of an estimate, the smaller the CV value the higher the quality. The true value is likely to lie within +/- twice the CV—for example, for an estimate of 200 with a CV of 5% we would expect the population total to be within the range 180-220. Key: * 0 = CV<5%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered precise ** 5 = CV <10%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered reasonably precise *** 10 = CV <20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered acceptable **** CV = 20%—Statistical Robustness: Estimates are considered too unreliable for practical purposes CV = Coefficient of Variation Source: Annual Population Survey

DEFENCE

Armed Forces: Malaria

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy to commission a reassessment of the appropriateness of the Lariam form of Mefloquine to protect service personnel against malaria; and if he will make a statement on recent reports of the adverse side-effects of such medication.

Anna Soubry: holding answer 17 October 2013
	The life threatening risks of malaria are extremely serious. Mefloquine is one of a number of effective antimalarials used by the military in many parts of the world where British troops deploy. The drug is licensed in the UK by the Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency, based on the expert guidance of the Advisory Committee for Malaria Prevention (ACMP) of Public Health England (PHE), which advises on malaria prevention for all travellers from the UK. Mefloquine is also used by other countries around the world including the wider European Union.
	The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is aware of recent calls for it to review its use of mefloquine. There is currently no evidence that members of the UK armed forces are at an increased risk from adverse drug events related to mefloquine when used for chemoprophylaxis. If compelling evidence is produced from the body of global scientific evidence regarding the toxicity of mefloquine, then it is likely that the UK license would be reviewed and advice from the ACMP may change. The MOD will continue to keep under review its use of all antimalarial drugs and follow the best advice as provided by PHE.

Defence Storage and Distribution Agency: Gloucestershire

Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with the management of the Defence Storage and Distribution Agency site at Ashchurch, Gloucestershire, to enable them to keep the workforce informed of their plans for the site; and if he will make a statement.

Philip Dunne: holding answer 4 November 2013
	I have had a number of discussions with the chief executive of the Defence Support Group (DSG), which is the major employer at Ashchurch and visited the site earlier this year where I toured the facilities and held a constructive meeting with the local trade union representatives. The chief executive briefed staff at Ashchurch as recently as 2 December 2013 on the most up to date plans for the site known to DSG management and he will continue updating employees as future plans for the site develop.

Defence: Procurement

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 25 November 2013, Official Report, column 36W, on defence: procurement, what proportion of defence procurement contracts valued in excess of £5 million was placed with small and medium-sized enterprises in each of the English regions and in the other constituent parts of the UK in the last three years.

Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 4 December 2013, Official Report, column 674W, to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Philip Hammond: Of the Department's executive board members, seven are men and none are women.
	Of the Department's non-executive members two are men and none are women.
	The Department is currently seeking to recruit two further non-executive board members.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its Executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups;
	(2)  what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in his Department.

Anna Soubry: The information requested for civilians in the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is shown in the following table. Data relating to MOD trading funds is not held in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	Average salaries are expressed as the mean, rather than median, which could be provided only at disproportionate cost, and would not fully represent the range of values.
	
		
			 £ 
			  White BME No declaration Male Female All personnel 
			 Non-industrial       
			 Band B1 59,835 — 60,027 60,181 58,594 59,852 
			 Band B2 50,405 50,342 51,076 50,786 49,620 50,494 
			 Band C1 37,936 37,933 38,319 38,263 37,093 37,977 
			 Band C2 30,896 30,897 31,480 31,232 30,388 30,954 
			 Band D 24,930 25,135 25,368 25,293 24,496 24,975 
			 Band E1 19,815 20,072 19,841 19,903 19,792 19,827 
			 Band E2 16,947 17,039 16,986 17,056 16,794 16,955 
			 Non-industrial total 26,774 25,149 28,466 28,817 24,246 26,869 
			        
			 Industrial       
			 Skill Zone 4 22,799 — 22,908 22,830 — — 
			 Skill Zone 3 19,792 19,395 19,529 19,770 19,256 19,750 
			 Skill Zone 2 17,328 17,231 17,178 17,301 17,320 17,305 
			 Skill Zone 1 15,638 15,612 15,613 15,658 15,591 15,632 
			 Industrial total 18,059 17,699 17,722 18,277 16,681 18,000 
			        
			 All grades 25,444 24,400 25,861 26,550 23,701 25,451 
			 ‘-’Denotes that the value is withheld; average based on fewer than 10 individuals. Notes: 1. Data for ethnicity and gender of personnel is sourced from the HRMS staff management database. While gender is 100% declared, ethnicity is a self-declared field and although declaration rates are sufficiently high to represent meaningful comparisons, average salaries for those who have not declared their ethnicity have also been given for completeness. 2. Data for members of the senior civil service is not held centrally by the MOD in the format requested and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Procurement

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contracts his Department currently holds with SAIC.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence does not hold any current contracts with SIAC Construction Ltd.

RAF Croughton

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2013, Official Report, columns 212-3W, on RAF Croughton, if he will supplement the current agreement for use of RAF Croughton by the US with an additional agreement in the light of developments in communications technology since the conclusion of the Status of Forces Agreement in 1951. [R]

Mark Francois: There is no requirement for an additional agreement regarding the use of RAF Croughton by the United States Visiting Forces.

Shipping

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has contracts with Inchcape Shipping Services; and what the (a) value and (b) length of such contracts is.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence does not hold any current contracts with Inchcape Shipping Services.

Sovereignty: Scotland

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions he has had with Ministers in the Scottish Government on defence prior to the publication of the White Paper on an independent Scotland.

Andrew Murrison: The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), did not have any discussions with Ministers in the Scottish Government about the White Paper on an independent Scotland on defence nor were any requested prior to its publication.

Sovereignty: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations his Department has received from the Scottish Government in the last 12 months on the proposed reconfiguration of the UK defence estate in the event of Scottish independence, as set out in Scotland's Future: Your Guide to An Independent Scotland.

Andrew Murrison: None. The Ministry of Defence has not received any representation from the Scottish Government regarding the reconfiguration of the UK defence estate in Scotland in the event of independence.

Sovereignty: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what representations his Department has received from the Scottish Government in the last 12 months on the proposed removal of the UK Trident nuclear submarines from Scottish waters in the event of Scottish independence, as set out in Scotland's Future: Your Guide to An Independent Scotland.

Andrew Murrison: None. The Ministry of Defence has not received any srepresentation from the Scottish Government regarding the removal of the UK's nuclear deterrent from Scotland in the event of independence.

UK Space Agency

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions his Department has had with the UK Space Agency to utilise existing or emerging technology to improve the UK's defence capabilities.

Philip Dunne: Ministry of Defence officials have regular discussions with the UK Space Agency, in order to formulate UK policy and share information on technological developments.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 17 June 2013, Official Report, column 502W, on unmanned air vehicles, if he will review the security classification of Joint Service Publication 900 in the light of the two recent reports by the UN special rapporteurs on use of armed drones; and if he will place a copy or redacted copy of that publication in the Library.

Mark Francois: We have reviewed Joint Service Publication (JSP) 900, which contains the UK policy relating to targeting for manned and unmanned aircraft systems. JSP 900 contains information that, if disclosed, would reveal to our adversaries useful information about how and when the UK might choose to use its weapon systems. This would or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.
	UK military personnel responsible for operating manned and unmanned aircraft must at all times act in accordance with International Humanitarian Law.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 31 October 2013, Official Report, column 550W, on unmanned air vehicles, whether the US makes any voluntary contribution of funding to support the facilities at RAF Croughton, RAF Moleworth or RAF Waddington. [R]

Mark Francois: The United States Visiting Forces (USVF) are responsible for meeting the costs of their day-to-day activities at RAF Croughton and RAF Molesworth. No voluntary contributions of funding in support of the facilities at RAF Waddington are made by the USVF.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 18 October 2013, Official Report, column 882W, on unmanned air vehicles, if he will place in the Library a copy of the Article 36 legal review on the use of armed unmanned aerial systems with privileged legal advice redacted. [R]

Mark Francois: The legal review conducted by DCDC Legal Branch on the use of unmanned aerial systems in the context of Article 36 is subject to legal professional privilege (LPP). LPP attaches across the body of the document and it is not open to redaction.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 5 September 2013, Official Report, column 491W, on unmanned aerial vehicles, what the in-service date is for the Scan Eagle capability approved as an urgent operational requirement in March 2013; and which naval deployments the Scan Eagle will support. [R]

Philip Dunne: We are still on track for the timelines I gave in my answer of 5 September 2013, Official Report, column 491W. The capability will be used to provide local force protection and surface surveillance to Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels. We do not routinely discuss the operational capability of deployed units, and so I am withholding further details as their disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the armed forces.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what initiatives concerning the current or proposed use of unmanned aerial systems in UK airspace are subject to review or other work by the cross-government unmanned aircraft systems and remotely piloted aircraft systems working group. [R]

Mark Francois: The Cross-Government Working Group on Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) is chaired by the Department for Transport. The Group is a forum to: inform RPAS-related departmental policies; identify synergies and opportunities for efficiency; and identify and address barriers to a successful UK industry base, supporting the Government's prosperity agenda. The Group is not required to review the current or proposed use of RPAS in UK airspace. However, all RPAS initiatives that affect, or could affect, more than one Department may be discussed by the Group.

Unmanned Air Vehicles

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 16 July 2013, Official Report, column 653W, on unmanned air vehicles, what the outcome of the MOD-MBDA trials planned for autumn 2013 was.

Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence, with MBDA support is still conducting the trials into the feasibility of integrating Brimstone onto Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems.
	Therefore the results are not yet available.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Electric Cables

Derek Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many requests there have been for a wayleave hearing in the last 10 years; and how many have resulted in an objector succeeding.

Gregory Barker: In the six years between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2013, the period for which records are available, the Department received 238 requests for a necessary wayleave hearing. 51 applications proceeded in this period to a full necessary wayleave hearing; one resulted in the objector succeeding.

Energy: Conservation

Tom Clarke: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the number of people employed in the UK energy efficiency sector.

Gregory Barker: In 2011/12, the UK's energy efficiency sector accounted for around 136,000 jobs and sales of over £18 billion. More information is available at:
	https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/low-carbon-and-environmental-goods-and-services-2011-to-2012
	The energy efficiency sector is defined as the sum total of employment in the building technologies and energy management subsectors, which employed around 112,000 and 23,000 people in 2011/12, respectively.

Fracking

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what documentary evidence exists to demonstrate that the Government has considered and is honouring the precautionary principle in its consideration of shale gas drilling.

Michael Fallon: The UK has a robust, comprehensive and safe regulatory regime in place for shale gas exploration. The Environment Agency's shale gas environmental risk assessment has found that the risks to the environment of hydraulic fracturing can be mitigated effectively through appropriate planning and permitting conditions and do not justify them objecting to any permitting or planning applications on the basis of the precautionary principle. Much of the activity proposed (e.g. flaring, borehole drilling and casing, surface run-off management) is not new and is commonly used in conventional onshore oil and gas exploration. However, the assessment of environmental risk in the case of hydraulic fracturing to explore for shale gas is site-specific and depending on local geological conditions the Environment Agency may object to future permitting or planning applications.
	Since minerals extraction does have an environmental impact, it is important that every planning decision should be made only after very careful consideration of all the relevant planning issues, including the likely effects of the proposed development on the surrounding area, and taking into account the views of local residents. In addition, applications for new shale gas sites in England, whether for exploratory drilling or full production, may be subject to an environmental impact assessment if there are deemed to be any significant environmental effects.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what the median gross pay is of staff in his Department and its executive agencies in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Gregory Barker: The median gross earnings of (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups in each pay band in DECC can be found in the following table.
	The information in the table is based on current declaration rates. In DECC Ethnicity status has not been declared by 30% of staff.
	Results in groups where there are five staff or fewer are not displayed to protect personal data.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Ethnicity group BME Unknown White All staff 
			 Grade Median Median Median Median 
			 AO 22,639 21,759 21,463 21,468 
			 EO 25,249 25,249 25,249 25,249 
			 HEO/FASTSTREAM 30,289 29,554 29,561 29,566 
			 SEO 37,334 36,115 35,643 35,956 
			 G7 47,457 47,457 47,457 47,457 
			 G6 57,289 57,859 57,973 57,957 
			 DEPDIR — 76,343 69,389 70,412 
			 DIR — 120,000 98,302 100,000 
			 DIRGEN — — — — 
			 PERMSEC — — — — 
			 All staff 30,980 38,259 38,259 62,971

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Gregory Barker: The system used by the Department for processing parliamentary questions does not have the facility to provide this information, and therefore it can be provided only at disproportionate cost. The content of the Official Report is a matter of public record and is readily accessible to the hon. Member online and in hard copy.

Renewable Energy: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what meetings officials in his Department have had with Peterborough City Council or its representatives on renewable energy proposals since July 2012; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: DECC officials have had one meeting with Peterborough city council officials on 8 August 2013.

TREASURY

Income Tax

Ian Lavery: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of how much the reduction in the additional rate of income tax to 45% will be worth each year for a person earning £1 million a year.

David Gauke: The cost of reducing the additional rate of income tax to 45% is estimated at around £100 million per year. This is set out in Table 2.2 of Budget 2013.
	We have not broken down the impact by income ranges. This is because there is a significant behavioural response associated with the additional rate of income tax. This behavioural response is estimated in aggregate, and reflected in the costing.

Amateur Sports Clubs

Phillip Lee: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what fiscal steps he has taken to help community amateur sports clubs.

Nicky Morgan: The Government announced on 25 November 2013, Official Report, columns 3-4WS, that it will be changing the rules for Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs). The tax exemption limits for CASCs will be increased significantly so they can keep more of their money to invest in grass root sports, and companies will be able to claim tax relief on gifts of money to CASCs under corporate Gift Aid. This will give CASCs new funding to promote sports in their local communities.

Aggregates Levy: Northern Ireland

Margaret Ritchie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress he has made on reinstating the Aggregates Credit Levy Scheme in Northern Ireland.

Nicky Morgan: The European Commission is currently undertaking a formal State Aid investigation in relation to the Aggregates Levy Credit Scheme. The process for, and duration of, the European Commission's investigation into the Aggregates Levy Credit Scheme are determined by the Commission itself.
	The Government has responded to the Commission's investigation on a number of occasions, outlining why it believes the Credit Scheme is compatible with Environmental State Aid guidelines. The Government is committed to introducing a new credit scheme for Northern Ireland, but it is unable to do so while the Commission's investigation is ongoing.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Nicky Morgan: There are four women and six men on the Treasury's executive board, plus one vacancy; and on the non-executive board there are two women and one man.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Nicky Morgan: The Treasury monitors the diversity of its executive and non-executive boards but racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.
	In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government Lead Non-Executive, Lord Browne, accepted that “the numbers of non-executives with minority ethnic backgrounds remains disappointingly low” but reiterated his commitment to improving their representation on departmental boards. This is a commitment I share.
	The Treasury is committed to ensuring it reflects the diversity of the public which its serves at all levels and has an active diversity agenda. Information on the diversity of Treasury's employees by pay range is published. The most recent information, March 2013, is in HM Treasury's ‘Annual Report and Accounts 2012-13’, page 43, available on the Treasury's external website.

Income Tax: Older People

Nigel Evans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the loss of revenue to the Exchequer of raising the income tax threshold to (a) £15,000 and (b) £20,000 for people over the age of 65.

David Gauke: The Exchequer costs of increasing the personal allowance for taxpayers aged 65 and over in the year 2013-14 are estimated at £3 billion for an increase to £15,000 and £5 billion for an increase to £20,000.
	These estimates are based on the 2010-11 Survey of Personal Incomes, projected to 2013-14 using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's March 2013 economic and fiscal outlook.

Infrastructure

John Healey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 27 November 2013, Official Report, column 313W, on infrastructure, for what reasons that Answer did not provide the locations of the 40 projects pre-qualified for the UK Guarantee scheme.

Danny Alexander: As is normal in project financing, non-disclosure agreements have been signed with projects ahead of commercial discussions about the guarantees scheme.
	Projects that have consented to be named are listed on the website:
	www.gov.uk
	Their exact location can be found through a simple internet search.
	The location of the remainder of prequalified projects cannot be disclosed as projects can be easily identified. This will not only breach disclosure agreements but will also negatively impact relations with key stakeholders.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Nicky Morgan: Filtering software is used within the Department to block access to certain inappropriate categories of website (for example, those containing violence or pornography). In addition, measures are in place to block access to some specific websites that contain potentially harmful software content, or malware. It is departmental policy not to publish precise details of the measures used, or what they block, as this could provide useful information for individuals who might seek to attack our IT systems.

Local Government Finance: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what value of loans has been made under the auspices of the Public Works Loans Board to Peterborough City Council in each year since 2011; what the purpose of each such loan was; and if he will make a statement.

Danny Alexander: The following table shows the loans advanced to Peterborough city council by the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). This information is also available on the PWLB website:
	
		
			  Total advanced (£) 
			 2011 0 
			 2012 0 
			 2013 to date 5,000,000 
			  5,000,000 
			  5,000,000 
			  6,000,000 
			   
			 Total 21,000,000 
		
	
	The Treasury does not hold information on the purpose of these loans. When borrowing from the PWLB, local authorities are not required to provide details of the purpose of the loan advanced.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide information on the take up of Help to Buy on a (a) local authority and (b) parliamentary constituency basis; and if he will make a statement.

Sajid Javid: The Government is committed to making the aspiration of home ownership a reality for as many households as possible. The Government wants current and future generations to experience the benefits of owning their own home, in the same way their parents were able to. Since the financial crisis, larger deposit requirements and falling equity values mean many credit-worthy households cannot get a mortgage, or are trapped in their existing homes unable to take the next steps.
	One month after the announcement of the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee on 8 October 2013, more than 2,000 people had put in offers on homes under the scheme totalling £365 million of new mortgage lending. The total number of RBS applicants was 1,075. The regional breakdown for RBS applicants is as follows:
	
		
			 Region Number of applications Percentage of total 
			 North 36 3.3 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside 87 8.1 
			 Northwest 159 14.8 
			 East Midlands 89 8.3 
			 West Midlands 81 7.5 
			 East Anglia 30 2.8 
			 South East 228 21.2 
			 Greater London 83 7.7 
			 Southwest 91 8.5 
			 Wales 44 4.1 
			 Scotland 124 11.5 
			 Unspecified 23 2.1 
			 Grand total 1,075 100 
		
	
	Once the Help to Buy: mortgage guarantee scheme opens in January, the Government will collect data on mortgages covered by the guarantee, and will report in due course.

Mortgages: Government Assistance

Hilary Benn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library any risk assessment, impact assessment or other similar assessment of the effects on house prices of (a) the Help to Buy equity loan scheme and (b) the Help to Buy mortgage guarantees.

Sajid Javid: The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is responsible for producing independent economic and fiscal forecasts, including house price forecasts. They published the latest Economic and Fiscal Outlook alongside the autumn statement on 5 December 2013.

Personal Income: Wales

David Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of changes in the level of incomes in Wales since 2010.

Sajid Javid: For the UK as a whole, real household disposable income has been higher over the last year than in the previous Government's last year in office and. indeed higher than any year under the previous Government.
	Following the deep recession that took place under the previous Government, we recognize that times remain tough for many families. That is why we have taken action to help with the living costs by for instance, increasing the personal allowance, freezing fuel duty, and reducing average energy bills by around £50 per year.

Poverty

Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times the word 'poverty' has been mentioned in his Department's parliamentary answers in Session (a) 2011-12 and (b) 2012-13.

Nicky Morgan: This is a matter of public record.

Revenue and Customs

Chloe Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much HM Revenue and Customs employees have worked in individual and employee tax collection in each of the last five years; and how many such employees have (a) received performance related pay and (b) been dismissed for under performance.

David Gauke: HMRC debt collection staff are trained to collect more than one type of Head of Duty tax, so we are unable to provide information for individual and employer tax collection in isolation.

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what HM Revenue and Customs' compliance yield has been in the financial year to date.

David Gauke: HMRC's year to date performance (up to October 2013) stands at £10.591 billion compliance revenue.

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the introduction of a four-digit pin for those completing the HM Revenue and Customs staff survey will enable individual responses to be identified.

David Gauke: HMRC is one of 103 participating organisations taking part in the Civil Service People Survey 2013. The current survey provider—ORC International—offers two options to participating organisations to allow respondents to enter the staff survey.
	A unique link providing each employee with an individual URL address with which to join the survey,
	A generic link which is a single link provided to all employees and requiring participants to select an Organisation Unit Code 'four-digit pin' to join the survey.
	Last year (2012) HMRC switched to using generic links, reducing the cost of running the survey and addressing staff concerns around anonymity. This year (2013) HMRC opted to use this process again.
	The 'four digit pin' provides complete anonymity for individuals and ensures that individual responses cannot be identified.

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the results of the 2013 HM Revenue and Customs annual staff survey will be published.

David Gauke: The external publication date for HM Revenue and Customs 2013 annual staff survey results will be agreed following the Department's Executive Committee's meeting later this month. In line with the Cabinet Office deadline of 30 January 2014,

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 September 2013, Official Report, column 348W, on revenue and customs, what progress his Department has made on its future plans for full-time equivalent numbers at HM Revenue and Customs in each area of its activity on 31 March in each year between 2014 and 2016.

David Gauke: HMRC is planning to reduce its full-time equivalent work force from the current 62,600 to 52,000 by 31 March 2016 in line with the requirements of the spending review 2013 settlement. It expects to continue to increase the proportion of staff engaged on compliance work within these overall plans as other business areas contract. HMRC is still working through the detail, including the breakdown for full-time equivalent numbers in each area of activity, and is currently taking into account the impacts of the autumn statement 2013 (AS13).
	AS13 makes no cuts to HMRC's budget and provides further investment over the next three years to reduce tax lost through evasion and avoidance and to reduce fraud, error and debts within the tax credits system.

Revenue and Customs

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff members of each directorate of HM Revenue and Customs are within three years of retirement age.

David Gauke: Given that HMRC does not operate a fixed retirement age policy, it is not possible to quantify those members of staff within three years of retirement age.

Sovereignty: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations his Department has received from the Scottish Government in the last 12 months on the proposed use of the Bank of England as the central bank of an independent Scotland, as set out in Scotland's Future: Your Guide to An Independent Scotland.

Danny Alexander: The Treasury has not received any representations from the Scottish Government on an independent Scotland continuing to use the Bank of England as its central bank after independence. If Scotland were to become independent, the Bank of England would be the central bank for the continuing UK. The continuing UK would have to agree to Scotland taking part in the UK's monetary arrangements as part of a currency union and it is highly unlikely that one could be agreed or made to work.

Sovereignty: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations his Department has received from the Scottish Government in the last 12 months on the proposed currency union between an independent Scotland and the rest of the UK in the event of Scottish independence, as set out in Scotland's Future: Your Guide to An Independent Scotland.

Danny Alexander: The Treasury has not received any representations from the Scottish Government on a currency union between an independent Scotland and the continuing UK. It is highly unlikely that such a currency union could be agreed or made to work.

Tax Evasion

Shabana Mahmood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent progress has been made by HM Revenue and Customs in initiating proceedings against those included in the 2012 and 2013 most wanted lists of tax fugitives; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) launched their most wanted list in August 2012, during the current coalition Government. 20 photographs were issued to the British press together with a brief outline of each case.
	Following this in August 2013, the list was expanded to 30 individuals, Malcolm McGowan was arrested at a public swimming pool, by officers of the Guardia Civil acting on the outstanding Spanish arrest warrant. HMRC successfully extradited McGowan by ferry from Spain on 5 September 2013 and he is now in prison. In addition Arthur Michael Fearon, who had fled to Republic of Ireland, was arrested at Belfast police station on 7 November 2013 and he is now serving sentence imposed by the court.
	HMRC continues to work towards bringing all current HMRC fugitives (including those featured in the Most Wanted Campaign) before the UK Courts. HMRC uses all available systems and resources to locate and trace individuals. This includes working closely with HMRC's fiscal liaison officers based overseas, Crown Prosecution Service, National Crime Agency, Interpol and other international partners.
	MRC continues to receive information concerning fugitives from the Most Wanted Campaign, both from the UK and from overseas. This information is analysed with the aim of supporting further arrests and successful extraditions from both the European Union and elsewhere.
	
		
			 Breakdown on progress on the 32 cases featured in HMRC Most Wanted Campaign 
			  Number Comments 
			 Proceedings started 7 - 
			 Arrests/conviction 4 John Nugent Anthony Judge Malcolm McGowan Arthur Michael Fearon 
			 Proceedings not possible due to lack of extradition treaty 6 European Arrest Warrants (EAWs) in place for 2 individuals who may travel 
			 Proceedings not yet possible as host country does not extradite for the Tax Offence 2 Considering EAW in 1 case 
			 Proceedings not yet possible, as Fugitive not located 11 - 
			 Awaiting Legal Decision 2 Currently with Crown Prosecution Service

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Afghanistan

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many Afghan women's civil society organisations her Department has consulted in the development of its strategic priority on tackling violence against women.

Justine Greening: DFID officials in Kabul maintain regular contact with a range of Afghan women's civil society organisations in Afghanistan. Recently, this has included meetings with representatives of Gender Action for Peace and Security, the Afghan Women's Network and Women for Women.
	In London, DFID has held formal consultations on tackling violence against women with the support of the British and Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group (BAAG), an umbrella group for 30 international aid agencies working in Afghanistan. One of BAAG's key roles is to reflect the views and aspirations of Afghans to the international community.

Afghanistan

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 24 October 2013, Official Report, column 268W, on Afghanistan, what mechanism was put in place by the Department to enable local businesses to use the land on the Bost Agri-Park before its closure.

Justine Greening: The completed park designs have been handed over to the Afghan authorities.
	The Bost agricultural business park proposal was originally approved by officials in 2009 at a time when Ministers did not approve spend under £40 million. In 2012 it became clear that the project could no longer be completed within the original timeframe and in good order. To avoid wasting taxpayers' money I decided that UK funding for the project should be cancelled.

Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 29 November 2013, Official Report, column 479W, on conflict pool, how the Building Stability Overseas Strategy will be used in setting the priorities of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund.

Alan Duncan: The Building Stability Overseas Strategy will continue to set the strategic framework for the Conflict Pool for 2014-15 and will underpin the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) from 2015-16. The Conflict Pool, and in the future the CSSF, will continue to support activities under the strategy on early warning, rapid crisis prevention, and upstream conflict prevention.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many of her Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Alan Duncan: DFID's Executive Management Committee consists of four men and one woman. DFID also has four non-executive directors, three men and one woman.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many of her Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Alan Duncan: The Department monitors the ethnic diversity of boards but racial or ethnic identity is not self-evident and is sensitive personal data. Given the small numbers involved we could not disclose the results of our monitoring without infringing the rights of the individuals concerned.

Nepal

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the implications for her Department's programmes in Nepal are of the recent election in that country.

Alan Duncan: The recent elections in Nepal were widely recognised as peaceful and credible. We hope that the newly elected Assembly can now complete the important task of drafting Nepal's constitution. The UK will continue to do everything possible to support this process, including offering technical support, while ensuring this is a Nepali-led process.
	The choice of DFID Nepal's programmes is based on the development needs of Nepal. Our current Operational Plan, which runs to 2015 will continue to support the peace process and constitution drafting; will focus on effective delivery of services in health, education and water and sanitation; will support economic growth and private sector development to create much needed jobs; and will help Nepal to be better able to deal with climate change and natural disasters.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the median gross pay is of staff in her Department in each pay band who are identified as (a) white British and (b) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Alan Duncan: The following table gives the median gross salary for staff who are identified as (a) White British and (b) of Black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups within DFID.
	
		
			 Pay Band/Grade Median gross salary (£) (White British) Median gross salary (£) (Black, Asian and other minority ethnic group) 
			 Permanent Secretary 1— 1— 
			 SCS 3 (Director General) 1— 1— 
			 SCS 2 (Director) 1— 1— 
			 SCS 1 (Deputy Director) 72,820 71,362 
			 A1 London (G6) 70,290 66,400 
			 A1 National (G6) 67,510 67,510 
			 A2 London (G7) 54,750 56,455 
			 A2 National (G7) 54,250 51,199 
			 A2L London (SEO) 43,718 44,549 
			 A2L National (SEO) 41,218 41,306 
			 BID(Faststream) 32,500 31,093 
			 B1 London (HEO) 35,680 35,680 
			 B1 National (HEO) 31,320 31,320 
			 B2 London (EO) 28,210 28,210 
			 B2 National (EO) 23,930 1— 
			 C1 London (AO) 23,275 23,275 
			 C1 National (AO) 19,500 19,500 
			 C2 London (AA) 1— 1— 
			 C2 National (AA) 1— 1— 
			 1 Median salary withheld as the number of staff in this category is 5 or less.

Pay

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the median gross pay of (a) men and (b) women is in each pay band in her Department.

Alan Duncan: The following table gives the median gross salary for men and women in each pay band within DFID.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Pay Band/Grade Median gross salary (Men) Median gross salary (Women) 
			 Permanent Secretary 1— 1— 
			 SCS 3 (Director General) 1— 1— 
			 SCS 2 (Director) 94,147 92,761 
			 SCS 1 (Deputy Director) 73,705 70,456 
			 A1 London (G6) 66,400 66,400 
			 A1 National (G6) 67,510 65,593 
			 A2 London (G7) 52,901 54,750 
			 A2 National (G7) 51,199 51,199 
			 A2L London (SEO) 45,380 45,380 
			 A2L National (SEO) 42,830 42,830 
			 BID (Faststream) 31,583 31,583 
			 B1 London (HEO) 35,680 35,680 
			 B1 National (HEO) 31,320 31,320 
			 B2 London (EO) 28,210 28,210 
			 B2 National (EO) 23,930 23,930 
			 C1 London (AO) 23,275 23,275 
			 C1 National (AO) 19,500 19,500 
			 C2 London (AA) 20,090 20,090 
			 C2 National (AA) 16,080 16,080 
			 1 Median salary withheld as the number of staff in this category is 5 or less.

Philippines

Gavin Shuker: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of the humanitarian support provided by the UK to the Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan has been reserved for safeguarding women and girls from violence.

Lynne Featherstone: DFID has allocated £3 million to programmes specifically to prevent harm to vulnerable people or to help victims of violence. In addition, we have provided assistance such as solar lanterns that help make women and children safer.

Recruitment

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what proportion of staff recruited to her Department since 5 May 2010 are (a) men and (b) women.

Alan Duncan: Since 5 May 2010 the proportion of women to men recruited into DFID was 53.1% to 46.9%.

Syria

Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps her Department is taking to adequately support the governments of Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey that are hosting large numbers of Syrian refugees.

Justine Greening: The UK has allocated £184 million to support refugees in neighbouring countries, including Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey. This is providing food for over 130,000 people per month, 71,000 medical consultations and an improved water supply for over 27,000 people.

Syria

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment she has made of the current humanitarian situation in refugee camps for Syrian (a) women and (b) children.

Justine Greening: There are almost 2.3 million Syrian refugees in the region, and over 75% of them are women and children. We are seriously concerned about the high incidence of sexual and gender based violence (SGBV) reported in the refugee camps. The UK is supporting survivors of SGBV including, for example, by providing clinical care and case management for 12,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. The Development Secretary recently held a Call to Action to protect Women and Girls in emergencies, and announced £21.6 million in new funding to partners to help protect girls and women in emergencies worldwide, of which £9.6 million will go to partners working in Syria and the region.
	Access to education and protection for refugee children, particularly girls, is a major concern. We have put in place a new £30 million “Lost Generation Initiative” to provide protection, trauma care and counselling for those children affected by the crisis. The UK is also working with UNICEF to provide education for 1,000 refugee children, as well as training teachers, and providing educational supplies to schools.

Syria

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what representations she has received on the creation of a humanitarian aid corridor in Syria.

Justine Greening: DFID supports many humanitarian agencies operating inside Syria. To date, DFID has received no formal requests or representations for a humanitarian corridor from these partners or other humanitarian agencies.

Syria

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what categories of aid her Department has committed to help Jordan with Syrian refugees.

Justine Greening: To date the UK has allocated £105 million to support Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan. This support is providing food, WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene), health services, shelter and non-food items, including winterisation items like heaters and blankets, protection, including adolescent friendly spaces and vocational education, and psychosocial interventions.

Syria

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the number of Syrians who have fled Syria since the start of the civil war in that country.

Justine Greening: According to the UN almost 2.3 million people have been made refugees since the Syria conflict began; one third in formal camps and the rest living in host communities. This number includes both those registered refugees and those awaiting registration.

UK Space Agency

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions her Department has had with the UK Space Agency to utilise existing or upcoming technology to improve the UK's response to humanitarian disasters.

Alan Duncan: DFID is in contact with the UK Space Agency through the Copernicus Emergency Service Network Group, a cross-Whitehall group coordinated by DEFRA and the UK Space Agency. It meets every three to six months to discuss the Copernicus Emergency Service and the International Charter for Space and Major Disasters, systems which provide data and imagery from satellites in the event of a natural disaster.

EDUCATION

Children: Health

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answers of 20 May 2013, Official Report, column 765W, on pupils: health and 12 November 2013, Official Report, columns 607-8W, on schools: health, for what reason the number of times well-being has been referred to in Ofsted inspectors' reports has declined between 2010 and 2013.

David Laws: This is a matter for Ofsted. I have asked Her Majesty's chief inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, to write to the hon. Member. A copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.

Children: Protection

John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many notifications of significant incidents were provided to Ofsted in December 2012; what the date of each such incident was; whether a serious case review was performed of each such incident; what the age range of the child concerned in each such incident was; and on what date Ofsted was notified of the serious case review of each such incident.

David Laws: This question is a matter for Ofsted. I have asked Her Majesty's chief inspector, Sir Michael Wilshaw, to write to my hon. Friend. A copy of his response has been placed in the House Library.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are (i) men and (ii) women.

Elizabeth Truss: The executive board has six male executive board members and two female executive board members. The board also has four male non-executive board members and one female non-executive board member. All of the Department's Ministers sit on the departmental board.

Directors

Sharon Hodgson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many of his Department's (a) executive and (b) non-executive board members are identified as (i) white British and (ii) of black, Asian and other minority ethnic groups.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education does not monitor the composition of its boards separately from its general monitoring of the representation of different ethnic groups in ethnic composition. In his most recent annual report (2012-13) the Government's Lead Non-Executive, the noble Lord Browne, accepted that:
	“the numbers of non-executives with minority ethnic backgrounds remains disappointingly low”
	but reiterated his commitment to improving their representation on departmental boards. This is a commitment I share.

Foster Care

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what steps he plans to take to (a) recruit and (b) retain foster carers.

Edward Timpson: The Government is undertaking a wide range of activities to support local recruitment and retention of foster carers, including:
	1. providing £250,000 over two years to the Fostering Network to raise the national profile of fostering; spread good practice; develop recruitment and retention materials; and provide bespoke support to 25 local authorities to develop their recruitment and retention strategies;
	2. providing £525,000 over two years to three consortia partnerships of local authorities and independent fostering agencies to develop innovative solutions to recruiting and retaining a broader range of foster carers. Their plans include developing targeted marketing; improving the ‘customer journey’ for foster carer applicants; and improving the way in which foster carers are trained and supported; and
	3. encouraging employers to support their staff who foster. The Department for Education is in the process of developing a human resources policy for staff who foster or are kinship carers. We will be encouraging other Whitehall Departments to adopt the policy.
	In addition, the Government's wider programme of reform for fostering supports recruitment and retention of foster carers by improving the assessment and approval process for new foster carers; facilitating more effective delegation of parenting decisions to foster carers; and awarding £90,000 to Research in Practice to develop training on foster care for social workers.

Internet

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Education whether access to any websites or domains is blocked from computers in his Department; and if he will publish a list of all such websites and domains to which access is prohibited.

Elizabeth Truss: The Department for Education uses a CESG1 approved commercial service to manage access to the internet for employees. The content of this is updated constantly as new websites are scanned or created; therefore, it is not possible to produce a precise list of sites and domains to which access is prohibited.
	1 Previously Communications-Electronics Security Group. Communications-Electronics Security no longer adequately describes the full extent of the organisations work, so in 2002 it was decided to drop the expanded name.

Kings Science Academy

George Galloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education 
	(1)  what reasons Action Fraud gave his Department in September 2013 for the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau's decision not to take the case of Kings Science Academy further;
	(2)  what requests his Department received in September 2013 from the police for the provision of information relating to Kings Science Academy, Bradford; and what response was given to those requests.

Edward Timpson: The Department did not receive any requests from the police for information relating to Kings Science Academy in September 2013. Communication in September was with Action Fraud and was by e-mail. Copies of the e-mails-which include an explanation of why this case was not taken further-have been placed in the House Library.

Schools: Sports

Margaret Hodge: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what funding for school sports his Department allocated in each local authority area in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11, (c) 2011-12 and (d) 2012-13.

Edward Timpson: Allocated funding for school sports in the years 2009/10 and 2010/11 totalled £160 million and £162 million respectively. The majority of this was given to 450 school sport partnerships around the country. The total funding allocated to the partnership networks was: £115 million in 2009/10 and £118 million in 2010/11. The remaining funding included a number of smaller grants for activities such as swimming improvement, general coaching development and competition management. The Department for Education does not hold this funding information broken down by each local authority area.
	From 2011, general funding for school sport became part of the overall Dedicated Schools Grant for schools and is not broken down by subject area. In 2011/12 and 2012/13 the Department also provided funding to each state-funded secondary school to allow them to release a physical education (PE) teacher from timetabled lessons for one day a week to provide specialist PE and sport support to other local schools. This funding is broken down by local authority area in the supplementary table.
	
		
			 £ 
			 Local authority Total2011/12 Total2012/13 
			 Barking and Dagenham 83,600 86,767 
			 Barnet 190,000 193,167 
			 Barnsley 114,000 71,567 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 121,600 114,000 
			 Bedford 190,000 190,000 
			 Bexley 152,000 155,167 
			 Birmingham 722,000 726,433 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 98,800 98,800 
			 Blackpool 91,200 91,200 
			 Bolton 167,200 159,600 
			 Bournemouth 98,800 91,200 
			 Bracknell Forest 60,800 60,800 
			 Bradford 266,000 272,334 
			 Brent 152,000 162,767 
			 Brighton and Hove 114,000 138,066 
			 Bristol City of 228,000 258,400 
			 Bromley 167,200 167,200 
		
	
	
		
			 Buckinghamshire 349,600 357,200 
			 Bury 129,200 129,200 
			 Calderdale 121,600 133,633 
			 Cambridgeshire 288,800 288,800 
			 Camden 98,800 114,000 
			 Central Bedfordshire 288,800 288,800 
			 Cheshire East 190,000 202,033 
			 Cheshire West and Chester 205,200 205,200 
			 Cornwall 288,800 266,000 
			 Coventry 205,200 190,000 
			 Croydon 220,400 232,433 
			 Cumbria 326,800 331,233 
			 Darlington 76,000 68,400 
			 Derby 152,000 170,367 
			 Derbyshire 440,800 443,967 
			 Devon 380,000 418,000 
			 Doncaster 182,400 191,266 
			 Dorset 311,600 349,600 
			 Dudley 197,600 205,200 
			 Durham 334,400 323,633 
			 Ealing 136,800 139,967 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 167,200 159,600 
			 East Sussex 266,000 299,567 
			 Enfield 182,400 182,400 
			 Essex 722,000 744,800 
			 Gateshead 114,000 114,000 
			 Gloucestershire 387,600 410,400 
			 Greenwich 114,000 121,600 
			 Hackney 129,200 129,200 
			 Halton 98,800 94,367 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 106,400 136,800 
			 Hampshire 714,400 728,334 
			 Haringey 129,200 152,000 
			 Harrow 98,800 98,800 
			 Hartlepool 53,200 45,600 
			 Havering 174,800 167,200 
			 Herefordshire 144,400 144,400 
			 Hertfordshire 798,000 827,134 
			 Hillingdon 167,200 182,400 
			 Hounslow 129,200 129,200 
			 Isle of Wight 60,800 63,967 
			 Isles of Scilly 7,600 7,600 
			 Islington 106,400 106,400 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 53,200 60,800 
			 Kent 1,018,400 1,036,767 
			 Kingston upon Hull City of 152,000 152,000 
			 Kingston upon Thames 114,000 98,800 
			 Kirklees 281,200 270,433 
			 Knowsley 91,200 91,200 
			 Lambeth 136,800 136,800 
			 Lancashire 851,200 851,200 
			 Leeds 342,000 354,033 
			 Leicester 182,400 182,400 
			 Leicestershire 456,000 456,000 
			 Lewisham 129,200 129,200 
			 Lincolnshire 577,600 539,600 
			 Liverpool 304,000 331,233 
		
	
	
		
			 Luton 106,400 106,400 
			 Manchester 273,600 266,000 
			 Medway 167,200 167,200 
			 Merton 91,200 91,200 
			 Middlesbrough 83,600 89,934 
			 Milton Keynes 152,000 144,400 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 144,400 160,866 
			 Newham 136,800 136,800 
			 Norfolk 501,600 471,200 
			 North East Lincolnshire 106,400 94,367 
			 North Lincolnshire 106,400 106,400 
			 North Somerset 121,600 106,400 
			 North Tyneside 152,000 156,433 
			 North Yorkshire 440,800 448,400 
			 Northamptonshire 372,400 372,400 
			 Northumberland 410,400 422,433 
			 Nottingham 174,800 177,967 
			 Nottinghamshire 402,800 440,800 
			 Oldham 98,800 98,800 
			 Oxfordshire 357,200 381,266 
			 Peterborough 121,600 121,600 
			 Plymouth 174,800 177,967 
			 Poole 98,800 221,666 
			 Portsmouth 98,800 98,800 
			 Reading 76,000 76,000 
			 Redbridge 167,200 167,200 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 114,000 114,000 
			 Richmond upon Thames 76,000 76,000 
			 Rochdale 114,000 117,167 
			 Rotherham 182,400 167,200 
			 Rutland 22,800 22,800 
			 Salford 152,000 144,400 
			 Sandwell 167,200 170,367 
			 Sefton 197,600 212,800 
			 Sheffield 235,600 228,000 
			 Shropshire 190,000 190,000 
			 Slough 106,400 106,400 
			 Solihull 167,200 167,200 
			 Somerset 387,600 349,600 
			 South Gloucestershire 152,000 152,000 
			 South Tyneside 114,000 106,400 
			 Southampton 121,600 129,200 
			 Southend-on-Sea 136,800 136,800 
			 Southwark 167,200 174,800 
			 St Helens 98,800 114,000 
			 Staffordshire 661,200 661,200 
			 Stockport 144,400 153,266 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 106,400 114,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 144,400 152,000 
			 Suffolk 608,000 516,800 
			 Sunderland 167,200 170,367 
			 Surrey 577,600 675,134 
			 Sutton 144,400 167,200 
			 Swindon 114,000 114,000 
			 Tameside 136,800 144,400 
			 Telford and Wrekin 136,800 139,967 
			 Thurrock 98,800 98,800 
			 Torbay 91,200 91,200 
			 Tower Hamlets 144,400 152,000 
			 Trafford 182,400 174,800 
			 Wakefield 167,200 174,800 
			 Walsall 190,000 197,600 
		
	
	
		
			 Waltham Forest 159,600 159,600 
			 Wandsworth 129,200 121,600 
			 Warrington 114,000 121,600 
			 Warwickshire 326,800 326,800 
			 West Berkshire 106,400 114,000 
			 West Sussex 364,800 456,000 
			 Westminster 91,200 98,800 
			 Wigan 174,800 174,800 
			 Wiltshire 273,600 273,600 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 114,000 121,600 
			 Wirral 220,400 240,033 
			 Wokingham 76,000 88,033 
			 Wolverhampton 190,000 182,400 
			 Worcestershire 418,000 469,934 
			 York 91,200 91,200

Schools: Transport

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Education how many schools have completed the School Travel Survey; and if he will publish the results of that survey.

David Laws: The Department for Education has only ever collected home to school travel information from schools as part of the School Census. However, changes to the School Census have meant that such information is no longer collected. The last collection was undertaken in 2011 and was published in June 2011.

Special Educational Needs

Stephen McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what plans he has to expand Parent Partnerships in schools; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: Parent Partnership services exist in every local authority area and provide impartial information, advice and support to parents of children with special educational needs (SEN). There are no plans to extend them in schools. However, the Children and Families Bill currently in the House of Lords will, when enacted, require local authorities to build on existing services to provide impartial information, advice and support to parents, and young people up to 25 years old with SEN, about education, health and social care.

Teachers: Trade Unions

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2013, Official Report, column 653W, on teachers: trades unions, when the meeting between his officials and the NASUWT and the NUT on their trade disputes took place; and how long it lasted.

David Laws: The meeting took place on 14 October 2013 and lasted for two hours.

Teachers: Trade Unions

Nicholas Dakin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education pursuant to the answer of 3 December 2013, Official Report, column 653W, on teachers: trades unions, when he met the representatives in relation to the trade dispute after 14 October 2013; and for how long.

David Laws: There have been no further meetings following the meeting with Department for Education officials, on 14 October 2013. A programme of talks about the implementation of education policy, including in those areas covered by the NUT and NASUWTs trade disputes, will begin this month.

Vocational Guidance

Rushanara Ali: To ask the Secretary of State for Education what assessment he has made of the quality and provision of advice on vocational qualifications.

Matthew Hancock: The Government wants young people to have access to advice on a wide range of options including apprenticeships, entrepreneurialism or other vocational routes alongside A-levels and university. We have placed schools under a duty to secure independent careers guidance for pupils in years 8-13, which is an important step towards this. Guidance secured under the duty must include information on the full range of education and training options.
	Ofsted's thematic review of careers guidance reported on 10 September. This found that, while some schools have responded well to the new duty, the extent to which schools promoted opportunities available at other providers, including vocational training and apprenticeships, varied considerably.
	To better equip schools to meet their duty, we will revise the statutory guidance for schools. This will be much clearer about what schools should do to ensure that pupils have information about all the types of education and training they could pursue.
	More details of the Government's response to Ofsted's report can be found in the inspiration vision statement and action plan. Both documents are available in the House Library.